Disneytalia
by VivaAmerica
Summary: A collection of one shots inspired by Disney Songs. Lots of characters, no definite pairings. I will take requests. Rated T because I'm paranoid.
1. You'll Be In My Heart

**This is going to be a little series of one shots I'll work on whenever I get writer's block because whenever I write about Disney songs I get tons of ideas. It's the power of Disney! :D I'll also be trying out different writings styles so don't get confused. Some of these chapters will be long, some with be short. It depends on how inspired I was by the song. **

**Song: You'll Be in My Heart  
**

* * *

A shadow slipped through the forest in total silence, like all shadows do. It was tall for a shadow and at the moment slightly bulky. Finally the shadow reached a clearing and paused. Slowly, ever so cautiously, the shadow stepped out into the moonlight. It was a woman. Long black hair framed her face and her dark skin gleamed in the dim night. She was still silent as she tiptoed her way to the middle of the clearing. Though she couldn't see it, she knew that soon flowers would open in the sunlight and butterflies and the occasional bee would drift their way through them. A warm breeze made the grass sway and whisper. This was an ideal place.

The woman looked down at the blanket wrapped bundle in her arms; Golden hair, chubby cheeks, and blue eyes that fluttered as he slept. This was where she would leave him. She knelt to the ground and flattened some grass to form a nest of sorts before laying him gently on the ground. Her son squirmed and whimpered at the loss of warmth and touch. She quickly cradled his cheek and soothed him with loving words. After he fell back into a deep sleep his mother leaned down and pressed a kiss to his forehead. She didn't want to leave him. Her heart ached at the thought of leaving him for the pale faces to find. But what could she do? He looked like one of them, they would hopefully accept him. She prayed that he wouldn't _become _like them.

"I'll be with you," she whispered. "You'll be in my heart, always." The wind seemed to still momentarily so as to not sweep the promise away. Then the shadow was back. It glided out of the clearing and back into the forest as streaks of pink stained the sky.

* * *

**I know, it's reeeeeally short. **

**Poor Native America. ;_;**

**I WILL accept requests for songs (I can't promise how quickly I'll get to them though), but please note that I don't write yaoi or yuri. I'm not homophobic, it's a religious thing. So leave a review or PM me about a song you'd like to see!  
**


	2. Something There - GerIta

**Song: Something There**

**Germany/Fem!Italy**

* * *

The halls of Hetalia High were a madhouse when the final bell rang. Someone could easily get trampled in the rush for the doors, especially a weak, ditsy Italian. Luckily for a certain Italian in particular, she was rescued every day by… But I'm getting ahead of myself here. Flashback please!

~Flashback!~

"Psst! Kiku, what did Mr. Kirkland just say?" Feliciana poked her Japanese friend with a pencil to get his attention. Kiku was a quiet young man with black hair and expressionless brown eyes. He sighed quietly and pointed to a spot on the page in the science book they were sharing. Feliciana's eyes skimmed over the page. Blah blah blah photosynthesis blah blah sun blah blah boring boring boring energy. "Oh, I got it!" she whispered. Kiku raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

Their teacher finished his lecture on the conversion of solar energy to sugars for the plant to eat just as the bell rang. Feliciana scooped up her book bag and raced for the door. The sooner she got home, the sooner she got PASTA~! She ignored Kiku's alarmed cry of "Wait Fericiana-san!" She ran outside the classroom and BAM! A wall of students hit the poor girl and she landed on her back. Now she was done for, the crowd would trample her for sure! She barely had time to scream before something grabbed her wrist and yanked her with considerable strength to her feet again. The same force pulled her into a side hallway and shielded her from the mob. Feliciana blinked and looked up, ready to thank her savior.

Serious blue eyes stared into her light brown ones and Feliciana squeaked in shock. It was that scary German kid! He was always so serious and he looked at her funny sometimes. "Are you hurt?" He asked in that deep voice of his. Feliciana blushed a bit and looked down.

"N-no!" she stuttered. "G-grazie! I would-a been c-c-crushed if you hadn't saved me." Her usual chirpy voice had faded to a whisper under the German's intense stare and she quivered slightly. He scared a lot of kids much braver than her with his seriousness and gruff way of speaking. She saw a hint of sadness flash across his face before he nodded sharply. He looked over his shoulder at the now empty hall. The end of the day rush was like a flash flood, here and gone in an instant.

"Vell, I'm glad you're all right. Lebewohl." He turned abruptly and walked away. Feliciana noticed with unusual perception that his shoulders were slightly slumped and his head bowed. Maybe… maybe he was like that Swedish boy, always quiet but secretly a very kind person…

…

Nah.

…

…

…

No way! That couldn't possibly be it! …Could it? Feliciana was lost in unpasta related thoughts as she walked back home. Finally she gave up and looked up at the sky. That boy! He was so confusing. And her tendency to blush whenever she thought about his clear blue eyes or strong masculine features was even more so. She'd never felt this way before, it was new and a bit alarming. "Whatever it is," she murmured, "There's-a something in him that I didn't see before."

~A Time Skip Inside A Flashback!~

Feliciana sat down at her usual table in the cafeteria. She hummed happily as she pulled out her lunchbox which was full of, you guessed it, pasta! She was soon joined by her sister Lovina, Kiku, her good friend Antonio and his good friends Francis and Gilbert. Those three were often called the "Bad Touch Trio", or the BTT, by the rest of the school. Kiku had once tried to explain the confusing name to her. Gilbert was "Bad", Francis had a tendency to "Touch" (Feliciana wasn't sure what that meant but from the way he'd said it she assumed that it was grownup stuff she wouldn't understand), and with Antonio they made a "Trio".

"Ohonhonhonhon! You look as beautiful as ever cher~." Francis purred as he sat down. Gilbert snickered and whispered something to Antonio that made him laugh as well. Lovina glared and probably would have said a few choice words if her mouth wasn't full of tomatoes. Gilbert stopped snickering suddenly and began looking around the crowded lunch room.

"Are you looking for someone amigo?" Antonio asked innocently.

"Oui, per'aps my petit cousin Madeline?" Francis asked not-so-innocently. Gilbert blushed, a startling contrast to his white hair, and punched Francis lightly on the shoulder.

"N-nein! I vas looking for my bruder!" Feliciana looked up with interest, she didn't know Gilbert had a brother.

"Oh, and what brought zhis on? You're usually not full of…shall we say…brotherly love?" Francis was grinning like the Cheshire Cat now.

"Vhatever, I'm too awesome to be offended. Anyvay, mein bruder usually sits vith his unawesome friends but today sissy boy is at a band competition und Vash is sick. So I am going to be awesome und allow him to sit vith us!" Feliciana smiled, even though Gilbert tried to deny it, there were times he could be genuinely nice. He must really care about his brother, she wondered what he'd look like. Was he albino like-

A flash of blonde caught her eye and she turned to look. It was the German boy! He looked back at her from across the room for a bit, his school lunch resting in his hands. His cheeks seemed to get red and he moved to walk in a different direction.

"HEY VEST! COME OVER HERE!" Everyone winced as Gilbert stood up and bellowed. The blonde boy swiveled around and looked at Gilbert despairingly. Feliciana gasped quietly, _Wait a pasta filled minute… is he…?_

"YOOHOO! OVER HERE! SIT VITH YOUR AWESOME BRUDER!" Gilbert was beckoning to the blonde boy. _Oh Holy Roman Empire! He is! _Feliciana looked down at her plate and furiously concentrated on eating. Her eyes flickered to the only empty seat…that was right next to her. She gulped and scooted away slightly when he sat down.

"Must you yell all zhe vay across zhe room bruder?" she heard him ask, she didn't dare look up.

"Yes. I must. Othervise you vould ignore me und not be able to bask in zhe glow of my awesomeness." With that said Gilbert promptly ignored him and started an animated conversation with Antonio over whether tomatoes or chicks were cuter. Feliciana had finished her pasta and now had no excuse to not look up and talk with the boy. Wait! Her sketchbook! She frantically pulled it out of her bag along with a pencil.

Feliciana was a talented artist, but now she was working on her hardest picture yet. It was an old childhood memory of when her family had vacationed in Germany. She bit her lip as she looked at what she'd done so far. It wasn't much, but you could discern two children, a boy and a girl, holding hands and looking at some far off mountains. She got to work, defining the children and adding trees. She could remember it all so clearly, the shy German boy she'd met, the fresh sweet air, and the quivery feeling she'd had in her chest.

"You are very good," the blonde boy whispered, his face closer to her ear than was entirely comfortable. She squeaked and whipped around to look at him. Now their noses were almost touching. They both jerked back. Luckily the BTT or Lovina hadn't noticed.

"Grazie! I'm glad you like it," Feliciana said shyly. He smiled slightly and she was amazed by the dramatic effect it had on his features. _He should smile more often… _She screwed up her courage and asked, "U-um, what's your name?"

"Ludwig."

"Ve~, that's a nice name!" Feliciana was becoming much more comfortable around Ludwig.

He blushed,"Not as nice as yours Feliciana…" Oh, he knew her name? "U-um, who are they?" he stuttered.

"Who?" Feliciana asked utterly confused. His blush deepened and he pointed to her picture. "Oh, that's me," she pointed to the girl. "And he's a boy I met when I was visiting Germany." She heard Ludwig inhale sharply and eyed him curiously. His face was now pale and his eyes were bugged out. "Um…Ludwig?" He snapped out of it and his blush returned.

"I…I have to go," he mumbled, standing up abruptly and almost running out of the room. Feliciana gaped, had she offended him?!

"Don't worry about it Fericiana-san."

Feliciana flinched again. She'd forgotten Kiku had been sitting on her other side. He looked at her and gave a tiny smile. Feliciana hoped he was right and that nothing was wrong with Ludwig. She didn't want anything to happen to her new friend!

…Friend?

…

...Yes, Ludwig was her friend. No doubt about that. She pressed a hand to her chest as the quivery feeling returned. Maybe… he was more than a friend?

~End of Flashback~

Thank you Mr. Flashback! You too Time Skip! Now, where was I? Oh yes, luckily for a certain Italian in particular, she was rescued every day by her German boyfriend. Let's take a look at how they're doing shall we?

~Commencing Flash-forward~

The bell had rung! Feliciana grabbed her book bag and rushed for the door… only to be stopped by a wall of muscle. She looked up and smiled brightly. "Ve~! Hi Luddy!" She pecked Ludwig on the cheek and giggled as his face turned red. "Can you come over to my house today? Please come! We're having PASTA~!"

Ludwig laughed and nodded, "Yes liebe, I'll come." They held hands as Ludwig forged a path through the chaos that was Hetalia High School. Feliciana loved Ludwig soooooooo much, she couldn't believe she'd ever been afraid of him! The way he opened doors, protected her – in other words the way he acted like a perfect gentleman – were endearing and the way he blushed every time she kissed or hugged him was adorable. Yes, there was definitely a lot more to her strict German than met the eye.

* * *

**GerIta! I love this song and I love this pairing! X3**

**Please review!**


	3. If I Never Knew You

**Song: If I Never Knew You**

**America/Fem!England**

* * *

The sheriff of a small town was sleeping. His hat provided shade against the already hot morning sun and his mouth gaped open. A sudden ruckus outside startled him to wakefulness. Pausing only to grab his gun and wipe the drool off his chin, he stumbled outside his office into the town square. A veritable mob was gathered and at least ten men were holding a young man and woman. "What's this all about?" The sheriff asked. He recognized the two captives. The boy was Alfred Jones, a farm boy that lived out of town. The girl, Alice Kirkland, also lived out of town, but she was considered "an odd one".

One man spoke up, "This girl is a witch! I saw her cast a spell! And this boy's been helping her!" The crowd murmured. The sheriff looked at Alice. Her bright green eyes were slightly eerie and hypnotizing. Her long blonde hair was wild and it looked like she'd been dragged out of bed with only her nightclothes on. Alfred looked the same way, his hair was rumpled and his blue eyes held a trace of grogginess.

"Did anyone else see her?" The sheriff asked. The crowd went silent. "Then I can't just arrest her on account of one man, especially one who has obviously been drinking!" He cast a scathing glance at the man's red nose and swaying gait. "Let them go and let's get on with our–" A woman in the rear of the crowd spoke up.

"She has to be a witch! Why haven't we had any rain this season? Why have our livestock been dying? She's a witch! A filthy witch!" she then pointed to Alfred. "And that stupid farm boy is obviously under some kind of spell. Why else would he be around her like he is?!" The crowd roared in agreement. Alice glared at them and Alfred tried to break free but the men held him down. The sheriff bit his lip, this was getting out of hand. He had to protect these two young'uns until things calmed down.

"All right! Here's what we'll do, we'll keep these two in jail for safekeeping and go get the judge. He'll know whether Miss Alice here is a witch or not." The mob grumbled and muttered among themselves but no one openly argued. The sheriff ducked back inside and came back with two pairs of handcuffs. "You can turn them over to me," He informed the men coldly. They reluctantly released Alfred and Alice. He leaned in close to Alice, "Don't worry now Miss Alice, I'm sure this will all be cleared up soon." He handcuffed them and led them gently to the jail.

"You just sit tight here," he told them before locking the jail cell and leaving to appoint someone to get the judge from the next county over. Alice buried her face in her hands and sobbed. Alfred pulled her into a hug.

"Hey, it's going to be okay Alice. We'll get out of this," he whispered.

"I-I'm so afraid Alfred. What if they… if they-" she couldn't continue.

Alfred sighed and lifted her chin with a finger so he could look her in the eye. "Alice, I will never let them hurt you, I swear." Instead of comforting her, this only seemed to make her more agitated.

"I'm so sorry Alfred!" she burst out. "I'm so sorry for getting you involved. It would have been better if we had never met!" She broke free of his grip and turned away. Alfred placed his hands on her shoulders,

"Alice, look at me." Alice twisted her head slightly but refused to look. "I'd rather die tomorrow than live a hundred years without you. If I never knew you, my life would be so empty. I'd have never known what true happiness was. I love you Alice."

Alice gasped slightly and finally looked at him. His baby blue eyes were sincere and loving. Tentatively, she raised her hand and brushed it against his cheek. He smiled and ducked his head to brush his lips against hers softly. She wrapped her arms around her neck and pulled him down for a more substantial kiss. When they broke apart, she whispered. "I love you too git," before pulling him back for a third kiss.

All other thoughts left their minds as they enjoyed what could be their last moments together. But then again, this could possibly be the beginning of something much more.

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**Cheesy ending is cheesy. *shrugs* Ah well. And if you were wondering what time period this is...I honestly can't tell you. It kind of has a Western vibe but I'm really not sure. XD**

**Please review!**


	4. I'm Still Here

**Song: I'm Still Here**

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Matthew looked out the window for a moment before turning his attention back to his sketchpad. These days he seemed to be drawing more and more depressing or angry art. This picture showed a boy in a crowd that was slowly fading out of existence. That's how Matthew felt most of the time. His twin, Alfred, always got the attention. He was athletic and popular. Not like Matthew. Matthew never begrudged Alfred his popularity, Matthew didn't want to be popular, but he wished people would see him for his own talents. He went unnoticed every day. He sat alone at lunch, no one remembered his name and they even confused him for Alfred sometimes!

There was a light knock on his bedroom door before it opened. His older brother Arthur poked his head around the corner. "Matthew, can we talk?" Matthew nodded slowly and Arthur walked over and sat on his bed. Matthew noticed how tired his brother looked. It wasn't a surprise. Arthur was almost ten years older than him, so when their parents had died in a car accident three years ago, he had been able to get custody for his two brothers. Now he worked two exhausting jobs to make ends meet and help pay for college, Arthur was determined that they both receive a good education. Arthur leaned his arms on his knees and clasped his hand together. He was silent for a minute before Matthew spoke.

"Is something wrong?"

Arthur looked up at him. "Yes actually. I got your report card this morning." Matthew winced. "And I couldn't help but notice that you were failing some of your classes. Matthew, you have an F in history. You love history! Alfred is getting better grades than you, _Alfred_!" he emphasized. Matthew looked down at the disappearing boy on his paper. He didn't want to hear this. "…Matthew, what's wrong?"

Matthew bit his lip, "Nothing's wrong," he whispered. Arthur frowned.

"Why are you failing your classes then!" he demanded. "Matthew, has something happened?"

"No."

"Has someone been bullying you?"

"No."

"Did–"

"NO!" Matthew stood up suddenly, knocking the sketchbook out of his lap. "Nothing's wrong except for the fact that no one notices me! People literally run into me because I'm invisible to them! So nothing's wrong Arthur, except for the fact I don't have any friends," he was becoming dangerously cynical. "I- I …I'M STILL HERE!"

Arthur stared at him wide eyed, never had Matthew burst out like that, he was usually so… composed. "M-Matt…"

Matthew grunted in disgust and stomped out of the room. "FORGET IT!" He yelled over his shoulder. He vaguely heard his brother call out to him but he ignored it and ran out of the house and down the street. He didn't stop until he'd reached the old playground. Gasping slightly, he sat down on one of the swings and looked around. He was completely alone. _As usual…_ Finally he caved in and started sobbing. He was so tired of this! He just wanted to be noticed, just a little bit. Was that too much to ask? Apparently.

After what felt like a lifetime, Matthew looked up at the sky. Night had fallen and the stars twinkled at him distantly. Something caught the corner of his eye and he turned just in time to see a shooting star fall out of the sky. He remembered his mother telling him once that you could make wishes on stars.

"Please, just one friend. That's all I want, _please_," he begged.

He looked for a few minutes longer before he gave up and despondently began walking home. He was trying to think of what he was going to say Arthur when a whistling sound made him turn around and squeak in terror. A huge ray of light was swiftly approaching him and he closed his eyes to keep from blinding them. A huge crash just to his left threw him into the air and he landed on his back several feet away.

The light finally dimmed and he opened his eyes cautiously. He gaped at the sight of a small crater a mere foot from where he'd just been. A moan reached his ears and he froze when a pale white hand appeared. An arm came next, followed by an entire body. The person (at least he thought it was a person) struggled a bit before they finally rolled out of the crater. Matthew inched forward when it didn't move and poked its arm. It suddenly bolted upright and Matthew shied away.

"Ow! Zhat's vas unawesomely painful!" a female voice shouted. "You're so not awesome Roderich, vould it kill you to be more gentle?!" The person shook a fist at the sky then looked at Matthew curiously. Now Matthew could see it was a girl about his age with long white hair and scarlet eyes dressed in a rumpled white dress. She stood up, swaying a bit and stumbling. Matthew automatically got to his feet and held the girl steady.

"Are you Matthew Williams?" she asked curiously. Matthew nodded mutely, wondering how the heck she knew who he was.

"W-w-who are you?" he asked, cursing his awkward stuttering.

The girl threw back her head and laughed. "I'm Galiena."

Matthew scratched the back of his head with his free hand, "No offense…but you just f-fell out of the sky! Um…h-how…?" he trailed off lamely.

Galiena smiled mischievously, "I vas only granting your vish." She laughed again at Matthew's dumbfounded expression. "I am a star," she explained and for a moment her hair glowed. "Stars grant vishes, but only if zhe person has a good heart und vishes vith all zheir might. I am awesomely here to help you find a friend und keep you company until you do."

Matthew finally found his voice, "…Wha?..."

Galiena looked at him for a moment before she started repeating herself, "I. AM. AWESOMELY. HERE-"

Matthew cut her off, "Stop for a minute! W-why would you want to help me?!"

"Vell, you have a good heart und you vished vith all of your might…right?" Galiena grabbed his wrist and pulled him along the park path, sidestepping the crater. "Come, I have vanted to see Earth for a long time und I'm not vasting a minute! Show me your house, und I vant to try some of your Earth food. Do you have wurst?"

Matthew tried to cut in but Galiena kept pulling him behind her. He was going to have a lot of explaining to do when he got home… as soon as he told Galiena they were going the wrong way.

* * *

**So...I really don't know what so say about this... It started off well when I wrote it, but then I went on to some weird tangent... Now that I think about it, this could also count for "When You Wish Upon A Star". Ah well, I included space somehow!  
**

**In case you're wondering, Galiena means "Exalted One" in German, so it was the perfect name for Star!Fem!Prussia! **

**Please review!**


	5. I Won't Say (I'm In Love)

**My first request! xXFancyFootworkXx requested some America/Fem!Romano. I'm not sure how well I did on it... but I tried my best!**

**Song: I Won't Say (I'm In Love)**

* * *

France whistled lightly as he walked down the upstairs hallway to his house. Everything was going according to plan today. As the self proclaimed Country of Love he took his job very seriously, and his job was to play matchmaker among his fellow countries...whether they liked it or not.

He reached a doorway and knocked lightly. "Is she ready yet?"

"Almost!" a voice called from the other side.

France heard the crunch of gravel that announced the arrival of a certain lucky nation. He grinned and ran down the stairs two at a time. Oh yes, everything was going according to plan.

* * *

Lovina grumbled as Poland put on one last dab of nail polish on her fingernails and fanned them lightly to dry them. Hungary hummed as she twisted up her hair into a knot, allowing a few curls to frame her face. Lovina bit her lip to keep from screaming. She was stuck inside one of France's dressing rooms (he had more than one apparently) being primped and prepared like some turkey for Thanksgiving all because she lost a stupid bet!

~Flashback~

_"Hey Lovina! I read somewhere zhat tomatoes were a fruit!"_

_"You idiot! Tomatoes are vegetables!"_

_"Would you care to bet on zhat? If I'm right, you have to go on a date with-" _

_"THERE IS NO WAY I'M GOING ON A DATE WITH YOU!"_

_"Honestly cher, I wouldn't stoop so low as zhat to get a date. You'd 'ave to go on a date with someone else."_

_"Who?"_

_"It's a secret~."_

_"...Fine. If I win, you have to be England's slave for a month!"_

~End of Flashback~

"Hmph! How was I supposed to know tomatoes were freaking fruit?" she moaned as Hungary and Poland finished their work. She glared at her reflection. Thankfully, Poland had applied minimal amounts of makeup so she didn't look like a clown. The only thing that stuck out were her ruby red lips that matched her dress. It was fairly modest, with short sleeves and a hemline that went down to her knees. But it hugged her slim build in all the right places and the shade of red complimented her tan skin.

Hungary held out a pair of red pumps to her and she reluctantly donned them. Poland clapped his hands in delight. "You are like, totes adorbs!" he squealed. Hungary nodded in agreement and reached into her pocket.

Lovina grabbed her hand. "NO. No pictures!"

Hungary pouted but gave in. "Fine, now it's time to go, I think _he's _here!" She glanced at Poland and they both began giggling.

Lovina glared at the two of them, "Will you tell me who my date is already?!" They shook their heads and began pulling her out of the room.

* * *

France reached the door and opened it, "Come in, you're right on time!" He moved aside to allow his guest room to enter. He was pleased to see that they had followed his instructions and dressed up.

"Thanks. Why'd you call me all the way out here?"

France shut the door and locked it, "Well, I need a favor... I need you to take Lovina out on a date!"

Wha?!"

France suppressed a smirk at the sight of their blushing face, "Merci! I knew you would understand!" He dragged the stupefied nation to the staircase.

* * *

Lovina felt her face heat up when she heard France talking to someone downstairs. She froze at the head of the staircase and couldn't be budged by Hungary or Poland. She saw France first, he was pulling someone along. He winked at her and pushed her date in front of him. Lovina's jaw dropped as she realized who her date was.

It was America.

He was dressed in a nice dress shirt and slacks. He gaped at her she noticed that his cheeks were red as well. Hungary must have gotten impatient because she pushed Lovina from behind. Lovina yelped and stumbled down the steps, only to be caught halfway by a pair of strong arms. Looking up, she realized she was inches away from America's face. She squirmed out of his grip and stared over his shoulder at France. France rubbed his hands together and she could hear Hungary and Poland snickering behind her.

"Well, why don't you two get going?" France prompted. "I 'ear that a nice Italian restaurant opened up near 'ere."

America seemed to snap out of his daze. "Y-yeah! Um... let's go...?" He held out a hand to Lovina and she accepted it somewhat graciously. Her pulse was definitely NOT increasing because she was holding America's hand. He led her out the door and she paused long enough to glare at the three troublemakers one last time before she slammed the door shut.

~Time Skip~

France shook hands with Hungary and Poland a few hours later as they were walking out the door. America and Lovina hadn't returned yet, which they took to be a good sign, "Merci mes amis, I could not 'ave done it without you." He glanced at Hungary, "I wish we could have gotten some pictures zhough."

They all gasped in shock when a black clad figure dropped down beside him. The person took off their hood and revealed himself to be...

"Japan?!"

Japan held out several photographs to them. "Prease, I managed to take some very good pictures." Poland and Hungary oohed and aahed over the pictures of Lovina and America eating at the restaurant and walking through a park. Both looked shy and smitten with one another.

Japan bowed, "I must go, there are many more ships to get photographic evidence of." He put his mask back on and jumped high into the air, somehow disappearing on the way up.

"He's like, a total ninja!" Poland sighed. "And his outfit is like, totally fabulous!"

Hungary nodded with a dreamy expression on her face, "Yeah...imagine all the yaoi he's got stashed at his house."

France shook his head at their antics and swiveled around to face the road. "Hey, I zhink zhey're coming!" he shouted. Sure enough, America's car was coming down the driveway. The trio watched as he parked and Lovina almost ran out of the car. They heard America call out to her but they were too far away to heard what he was saying. Lovina was holding a bouquet though so France figured it must have gone well. Lovina shoved past them muttering something about getting changed. Poland and Hungary followed, obviously wanting to interrogate her.

Frnace strolled over to America's car and knocked on the window. He waited patiently as he rolled it down and asked coyly, "Soooo? How did it go?"

America's already blushing face turned redder and he looked away, "Uh...it..." he gulped and tried again. "Um, it was really good!" His voice cracked and he gulped again. "Hahahaha...I...I was totally a hero and got her some flowers. The food was good, not as good as burgers but yeah..." he trailed off. "Um, I should probably get going."

France nodded, "Of course, merci!"

America started the car but paused for a moment, "Um...France?"

"Oui?"

"If you ever need another..._favor_...like that...you know where to find me."

France bowed slightly, "Oui, I do~."

America speed away, leaving France in the dust. He sneezed and rubbed at his eyes, but he couldn't stop the grin from forming on his face. "It worked!" he shouted to the air. He heard the door slam and saw Lovina stomp outside to her car. France ran up to her and caught her forearm.

"Let me go! I've finished my dumb bet!" Lovina hissed.

"Non, non cher~! Tell big brother all about your date."

Lovina shrugged and crossed her arms, "Nothing happened! We just ate and walked around for a bit!"

France pointed to the flowers still in her hand, "Oh, and what about zhose?"

"T-t-these are just something t-that stupid American got me on a whim!" Lovina stuttered. France let her go,

"Fine, say whatever you want. But I _know _you love him, even if you don't admit it." He walked back towards his house and Lovina stood there dumbfounded for a moment. Then she stomped her foot and yelled,

"I-I'LL NEVER SAY I LOVE THAT IDIOT!" She got inside her own car and slammed on the gas pedal. She held her breath until she was at least a hundred yards away from that madhouse before she released it. She looked at the bouquet she'd thrown on the passenger seat and a smile came unbidden to her lips. Her date had been..._absolutely wonderful_! Not that she would _ever_ admit it. Not out loud anyway.

* * *

**I have mixed feelings about this chapter. I feel like I should have written about their date but then again I Won't Say (I'm In Love) is about her reaction after the date...and I've never written Romerica before... but I tried, and I'm glad I got a challenging request to work on. I really had to wrack my brain to come up with a plot!  
**

**Send in requests! Please! I'm having writers block for this story so this may be the last chapter if no one requests anything! DX**

**Review, review, review!**


	6. I Just Can't Wait To Be King

**Another request! This is for a guest who goes by Ayumi Kudou who wanted some trolling. *snicker*  
**

**Song: I Just Can't Wait To Be King**

* * *

Wy adjusted the flower in her hair and tugged at her shorts nervously. Her other hand gripped Australia's and he looked down and grinned encouragingly at her. "Don't worry," he said, "You can wait outside if you want to." Wy shook her head. She wanted to attend the World Conference just like her brother, even if the thought of all those bigger nations scared her a bit.

They walked down the hall in silence and soon enough they heard a babble of noise coming from behind a door. A sudden yell of indignation made Wy turn around.

It was Sealand, he was facing off an irate England and shouting at the top of his lungs. "It's not fair you big bully! I'm a country just like anyone else, I deserve to attend too!"

Wy pulled her hand out of Australia's. "I be right inside," she murmured, running to where England and Sealand were arguing.

"You're not a country yet Sealand!" England was shouting. "Now go home and watch anime of something!"

Wy cleared her throat and they both looked at her. Her voice quavered, but she said, "Um, excuse me Mr. England? I'm going to be at the conference, and I'm a micronation too!" Sealand grinned and threw an arm around her shoulder.

"See you jerk? She's going!"

England shook his head despairingly, "That is Australia's decision. But _my _decision is that you go back home. NOW!"

Sealand pouted and stomped his foot. "You meanie! You just wait, I'm going to become the most powerful nation in the world one day!"

"Oh yes, that should be quite easy when your 'country' consists of a sea fort!" England mocked but Sealand was ignoring him at this point and talking to Wy excitedly.

"I just can't wait to be recognized as a country, can't you?!" Wy nodded and smiled. "No one will be able to say 'do this' to us ever again!" he continued!

England held up a hand, "Now wait a minute, when I said that-

Wy grabbed Sealand's hand and they spun around in circles getting into the spirit of things. "Yeah, and no one saying 'be there'!" Wy giggled.

"I merely meant that-"

Sealand pulled Wy so they stopped spinning and circled around a flustered England. "No one saying 'stop that'!"

"You don't realize-"

"No one saying 'see here'!"

England had had enough, "NOW SEE HERE!" he grabbed at Sealand's arm but he jumped out of his grasp and stuck out his tongue. Wy was laughing uncontrollably at by this time and didn't notice a figure was coming down the hall towards them.

The two children ran around, dodging England's attempts to catch them.

"No one will boss us around anymore!"

"We'll do whatever we want!"

"Stay up as late we want too!"

"And eat ice cream every day!"

"Every meal!"

England was so intent on catching the troublemakers that he gasped in surprise when a strong hand caught his arm. Looking up, he found himself staring at a stern faced Germany. "You are late!" he shouted. "Zhe meeting is about to start!" Germany shook his head, "I vould expect zhis kind of zhing from mein bruder or America, but I expected better from you."

He dragged England off, ignoring the other nations protests that it wasn't his fault, he'd been distracted by these two youngsters and would he stop a moment to here him out?! Sealand and Wy watched as the door slammed shut.

"Well, I suppose there's no way we can get in now," Sealand sighed. Wy held his hand,

"Don't worry about it. We'll be in there someday." Sealand grinned at this and pointed to the stairs.

"Do you want to do down to the kitchens? We might as well enjoy skipping out on the meeting." Wy nodded and the raced to the stairs. Food would satisfy them for now, but one day they would be recognized nations and make a difference in the world.

They couldn't wait.

* * *

**I'm not sure how well I did on the trolling part, but England definitely got annoyed! XD**

**I. NEED. REQUESTS! My creative juices are drying up faster than an octopus in the Sahara desert!**

**Review! Request! Repeat!**


	7. He's A Tramp

**This is for the lovely WaltzingMatildaalldaylong who wanted some Prussia/Liechtenstein!  
**

**Song: He's A Tramp**

* * *

Lilli took a deep, calming breath as she stepped out of the bus and onto the sidewalk. In front of her stood the impressive campus of Hetalia High School. She felt Vash place a hand on her shoulder and leaned into him for support. Today was her first day at high school and she was terrified. Vash straightened out her blue hair ribbon and grabbed her hand, "Come on, let's go." He led her to the main doors and Lilli found herself engulfed in a crowd of people. She clung to Vash and kept her head down, they were all so big! She felt like a mouse compared to some of them.

Vash pushed past them and headed for on of the side hallways. He paused at a vending machine, "Do you want anything?"

Lilli looked at it. She knew her brother didn't like wasting money, so he really must want to treat her to something. "Well...maybe a lemonade?" she asked. Vash nodded stiffly and fished into his wallet for a dollar. Lilli clutched her binder tightly and looked around at all the posters on the wall. A poster for an art club caught her attention and she walked towards it to see better. Maybe she should join, she like art and-

She squealed when something crashed into her and she would have fallen if an arm hadn't caught her by the waist. She gasped in shock as she was righted to her feet and she turned around to thank her big brother for catching her...but it wasn't her brother.

A tall young man with a shock of white hair and red eyes smirked down at her. She felt herself blush as his eyes looked her up and down. "Ksesesese! Sorry about zhat, are you okay?" his expression gentled and Lilli's cheeks turned from pink to scarlet. He smiled and Lilli was captivated by his handsome face.

"O-oh yes. I'm a-all right!" she stuttered.

"Hey you!" Vash walked up to them, holding the lemonade, and shoved the man away. "Stay away from my sister! You touch her again and I'll kill you until you're dead!"

The young man pouted, "Fine, but you're unawesome Zwingli!" He turned on his heel and sauntered back into the crowd. Lilli stared after him, her cheeks still red.

"Bruder, who was that?" she asked softly.

Vash snorted, "A tramp. Stay away from him." Lilli tilted her head in confusion, why would a tramp be at school? Vash handed her her drink and grabbed her hand again. "Come on, the bell will ring soon and I want to show you where your first class is.

_Time Skip_

Lilli walked into the cafeteria and looked around, it was jam packed with people. Unfortunately, her brother did have the same lunch period as her, but she knew a couple of his friends did. She scanned the tables, looking for a familiar face.

"Lilli! Is that you?" A voice called from her left. She sighed in relief when she saw it was Elizaveta waving to her from a table nearby. She half ran to it and sat next to Elizaveta and her boyfriend Roderich. She pulled out her lunch bag and bit into her sandwich.

"How has your first day been so far, Lilli?" Roderich asked politely.

Lilli swallowed and dabbed at her mouth with a napkin. "It's fine, my teachers are all nice and-"

"Ksesesese! So your name is Lilli?" The white haired boy was back, he leaned close to Lilli's face and smiled his breathtaking smile again. Roderich frowned and Elizaveta rolled her eyes.

"It's none of your business you scoundrel!" Roderich tsked. "Now go away and leave us to eat in peace!"

The man cackled, "As if I'd listen to you sissy boy!" He wrapped an arm around Lilli's shoulders and she felt the blush return. He leaned in close and whispered, "You're name is as pretty as you Lilli. How about we ditch- OW!" He jumped back and rubbed his head. Elizaveta was standing over him holding a frying pan of all things.

"We told you to leave," she growled, brandishing the pan.

He flinched, "Vhere zhe did you get zhat?!" Elizaveta raised it as if preparing to strike again. He ran off to a table farther away where Lilli could see a blonde boy and a brunette were waiting.

"Who was that?" she asked for the second time that day.

"A cad. You don't want to get mixed up with _him_." Roderich advised.

Elizaveta patted her shoulder, "That was Gilbert Beilschmidt, the biggest troublemaker in school. Roderich's right, you don't want to get involved. But..." she looked slyly at Lilli's blushing face. "He sure is easy on the eyes, isn't he? I dated him for a while before I met Roderich."

Roderich muttered something and looked away. Elizaveta giggled and kissed his cheek, "Don't worry, I like you better~!"

Lilli tuned them out and watched Gilbert. He seemed to be laughing about something with the two other boys and his expression was delightful to watch. Even if he was a tramp, Lilli knew she wouldn't mind seeing more of him.

* * *

**This was fun to write! I was planning to write a story for this song with France, but this worked out so much better!**

**Please review!**


	8. Kiss The Girl

**Song: Kiss The Girl**

**Prussia/Fem!Canada**

* * *

Gilbert leaned against the wall of the gymnasium and watched couples dance their way across the floor. He could see a few familiar faces amid the crowd, Romano and Carmen for instance, and François with her date Philip. He spotted his cousin Roderich dancing with his (slightly crazy/annoying) girlfriend Elizaveta. Gilbert thumped his head softly against the concrete wall and groaned. Every year for three years he'd been the life of the party at Homecoming, but this year not only was he too depressed to dance, he didn't even have a date. That's right, he, the awesome Gilbert Weillschmidt, didn't have a date for Homecoming. He didn't have a date because…he was too afraid to ask her. No, he was too awesome to be scared, he was…_concerned_. Yes, concerned, that was it.

"Don't you want to dance?"

Gilbert opened his eyes to look at Amelia Jones-Williams, a loud yet not-as-annoying-as-Elizaveta girl with blonde hair and blue eyes only a few shades lighter than - Gilbert shook his head.

"Zhe awesomeness zhat is me is not in zhe mood. Vhat about you?"

"Arthur's getting us some punch." She turned to look at the dancers and giggled, "Your brother and Feliciana are such a cute couple!" Gilbert smiled at the sight of his brother dancing with the pretty Italian, an almost-but-not-quite unmanly blush on his cheeks.

"Yeah, at least he got _some _awesomeness from me."

Amelia peered at him out of the corner of her eye and said casually, "Ya know, my sister's here."

If Gilbert had been drinking, he would have done a spit take. "VHAT?! I thought she didn't like zhese kind of zhings!"

Amelia shrugged and flicked a piece of hair over her shoulder, "Yeah, I don't know what got into her. She's not even dancing though, she's over by the door reading. I mean, c'mon, who brings a book to a dance?" She looked up and saw a figure weaving his way through the crowd. "Well, that's Arthur. See ya Gil."

Gilbert didn't even notice her leave, he was looking at the door, trying to see…there. There she was. Dressed in a stunning red dress with a white sash, Madeline's soft, wavy blonde hair and her book hid her face. But Gilbert knew what her face looked like only too well. Especially those beautiful indigo eyes.

The song ended (What song? Gilbert wasn't paying attention to anything around him.), and Elizaveta grabbed a microphone that conveniently appeared out of nowhere. "All right people, I'm gonna interrupt for a moment and sing a little song for all of you. This song's dedicated to a friend of mine. I hope you all enjoy!" She boldly walked out to the middle of the floor with Carman and François. She nodded to the DJ and began singing.

_Kiss the girl~  
(Kiss the girl)  
There you see here  
Sitting there across the way  
She don't got a lot to say  
But there's something about her~_

Gilbert blinked in shock; that sounded like she was describing…Wait, she'd said this song was for a friend right? They weren't friends…right?!

_And you don't know why  
But you're dying to try  
You wanna KISS the girl~!_

Carmen and François laughed and pointed at Gilbert, then at Madeline who was still lost in her book. A deep red blush covered his face and he glared at them, especially Elizaveta. What was she DOING?! This was totally unawesome! Elizaveta ignored the look and slowly began walking towards Gilbert.

_Yes, you want her  
Look at her, ya know you do~ _(Again she pointed at Madeline. She really had to stop that, other people were starting to look.)_  
It's possible she wants you too  
There's one way to ask her_

Now THAT, he knew, was a lie. Madeline saw him as a friend, nothing more, nothing less.

_It don't take a word, not a single word  
Go on and KISS the girl!  
(Kiss the girl)_

Everyone in the gym was starting to catch on that this "friend" was Gilbert. Wolf whistles and calls of "Who is it?" and "Do it!" barraged his ears. Gilbert squeezed his eyes shut. _Nein, nein, nein! I don't want to ruin our friendship! She doesn't like me that way! _He didn't notice Elizaveta had gotten closer until she started singing again, scaring the Gilbirds out of him.

_Shalalalala  
My oh my  
Looks like the boy's too shy  
Ain't gonna kiss the girl.  
Shalalalala  
Ain't that sad  
It's such a shame, too bad_

Gilbert and Elizaveta were face to face now. Elizaveta pointed to the still oblivious Madeline and sang,

_You're gonna miss the girl…  
Go on and KISS the girl _(Did she just WINK at him?!)  
_(Kiss the girl)_

Gilbert saw Carmen slowly walk towards Madeline and frowned. Madeline was so shy, if she knew what was going on…she'd leave for sure. And possibly never speak to Gilbert again. That couldn't happen. He pushed past Elizaveta and tried to ignore her singing as he pushed through the crowd.

_Now's your moment,  
Floating in a blue lagoon _(The lights suddenly turned a deep shade of blue. How many people were in on this?!)  
_Boy, you better do it soon  
No time will be better._

"Yeah Gil, go get some!" Amelia yelled, bouncing up and down like a toddler. Arthur facepalmed but a smile hovered on the corners of his mouth. A particularly big clump of squealing, fangirls blocked Gilbert's path but François, who'd been following him, motioned for them to move out of the way, which they quickly obliged.

_She don't say a word  
And she won't say a word until you KISS THE GIRL~  
(Kiss the girl)_

Carmen gently tugged the book out of Madeline's hand and she looked up. Gilbert could see the confusion in her eyes as she took in the excited crowd. She saw Gilbert and raised an eyebrow, a "What the heck is going on" expression on her face.

_Shalalalala  
My oh my  
Looks like the boy's too shy  
Ain't gonna KISS the girl  
Shalalalala  
Ain't that sad  
It's such a shame, too bad  
You're gonna miss the girl._

_Shalalalala  
Don't be scared  
You better be prepared  
Go on and kiss the girl~_

Elizaveta draped an arm around Gilbert's shoulder and pointed to Madeline again. Madeline looked around in confusion, and then whispered something to Carmen, who laughed. That was just like Madeline, Gilbert thought, she was so modest. She didn't know they were singing about –

"It's YOU sis!" Amelia whooped. Never mind.

_Shalalalala  
Don't stop now  
Don't try to hide it how  
You wanna KISS THE GIRL~  
Go on and kiss the girl._

Elizaveta shoved Gilbert towards Madeline, who was only ten feet away now, and people cleared a path for him, yelling and laughing. Madeline's face was now crimson to the roots of her hair and she looked like a deer in the headlights. Gilbert wanted to hold her, protect her from the stares, and tell her…what? Carmen, François and Elizaveta circled closer. Gilbert ran forward and took Madeline's hand.

_Lalalala, lalalala  
Go on and kiss the girl~_

"Gilbert?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

_Lalalala, lalalala_

_Go on and-_

"Birdie, it's not vhat it-"

Elizaveta stuck her head between them and whispered, "Kiss already!" Madeline flinched and tears filled her eyes. She tore her hand out of Gilbert grasp and ran, slamming the doors open and fleeing for the parking lot.

"Birdie!" Gilbert yelled, running after her. He also noticed, to his immense ire, that Elizaveta was STILL singing.

_Shalalalala  
My oh my  
Looks like the boys too shy  
Ain't gonna KISS the girl_

Cool night air whipped around his messy hair and plucked at Madeline's dress, slowing her down. Gilbert caught hold of her shoulder and spun her around. Tears were streaming down her cheeks and they looked like moonbeams in the soft light.

"W-why would you do that Gil?" She sobbed, clutching at front of his dress shirt. "Is that your idea of a joke? Am I funny to you?!"

"Vhat?! Birdie, I didn't have a clue zhey vere going to do somezhing unawesome like that! I vould never do zhat to you. I-I, I LOVE you too much to ever hurt you like zhat!" Giblert's eyes widened and he clamped his mouth shut. Did he really just say that? To her? Madeline looked up in surprise.

"Really? Do you really feel that way about me?"

_Shalalalala  
Ain't that sad  
It's such a shame, too bad  
You're gonna miss that girl._

Gilbert took a deep breath, it was now or never. "Yes Birdie, I really do. I…I know you don't feel zhe same way, but-" He was cut off by a pair of soft lips on his own. It took a couple of seconds to process that Madeline, _Madeline, _his precious, beautiful Madeline…was kissing him. His eyes fluttered closed and he wrapped his arms around her waist and she tangled her fingers in his white hair.

_Lalalala, lalalala  
(Go on and kiss the girl)  
Go on and KISS THAT GIRL~!_

_Lalalala, lalalala  
(Go on and kiss the girl)_

_Go on and kiss the girl~  
Kiss the girl  
(Kiss the girl)  
Go on and KISS the girl!_

The cheers and shouts of the crowd startled them both and they separated. Madeline looked down in embarrassment and tried to take a step back but Gilbert tightened his hold on her waist and buried his face into her soft curls. She glanced up at him and smiled her soft, amazing smile. Gilbert chest felt like it would explode with happiness.

Madeline glanced over his shoulder and blushed again before hiding her face in his chest. Curiously, Gilbert turned around…and found half of the student body outside. Watching them. Elizaveta, François, and that Japanese kid, Koki or something like that, had their phones out and were gleefully taking pictures of them.

"Tch, can't two awesome people have _some _privacy?" Gilbert mumbled under his breath. Elizaveta gave him the thumbs up and mouthed "You owe me big time." Gilbert rolled his eyes and grabbed Madeline's hand. "C'mon Birdie," he said as he pulled her back towards the gym, "Let's show these unawesome wannabe's how to dance."

* * *

**SQUEEE! I love PruCan! X3 This was technically the first Disneytalia piece I ever wrote so I'm pretty proud of it. **

**Requests are awesome! Reviews make my day!**


	9. He Is Not One Of Us

**Hey guys! I decided to stop being lazy and write something! /shot/ This is for TotalHetaliaWarrior. I'm not sure if it's what she had in mind, but I tried my best. ^^'**

**Song: He Is Not One Of Us**

* * *

"Troublemaker."

_"Just look at him sitting there!"_

_"Quiet! He'll hear you!"_

Yeah, I can hear you. I may be awesome, but that doesn't mean I'm stupid. Well, not completely stupid. Uh oh, bruder's had enough of your unawesome talking. You tell 'em West! Yes! For once he's not yelling at me! Do you know how often that happens? Not very often, West is kind of unawesome like that. It's America's turn to speak now, I wonder what he's managed to come up with this time. England will probably end up yelling at him then get in a fight with France. I swear, that man has so much pent up sexual tension it's not even funny. No, I lied, it's hilarious.

_"Remember when he-"_

_"Yeah! And that time with Austria?"_

Oh please, that's ancient history. Back when I was younger (but still awesome). I can't believe sissy boy is still holding a grudge over that. If you can't defend your country you don't deserve to...never mind. Ah, I wish I could go back to the good old days, back when I was a knight! A conqueror! A country...

_"Why is he even here?"_

_"I know, it's not like he has any say in what we do anymore."_

I used to though. You remember. I was the one everyone was afraid of, me, Spain and France. And afterward during the World Wars with West. I definitely had a say then, didn't I? I can still see it you know, you're still afraid of me. Maybe you don't respect me anymore, but you fear me. You still acknowledge me, which is more than I can say for that weird kid in the sailor suit who bugs England all the time.

You still fear me, even if I'm not one of you anymore. That's good to know.

It's all I have at this point.

* * *

**Poor Prussia! DX I'm actually glad I got to do this one because I need to practice writing in 1st person for Prussia because of...reasons...*shifty eyed***

**Also, I need your help. Someone requested I use my OC Mexico and someone I ship her with. The problem is...I don't ship her with anyone. It's not that I don't want to ship her with anyone, I've just never thought about it. ^^' So I need suggestions, it doesn't have to be based on history, it can be because they look cute together or because they have similar personalities. If it is based on history though, please give me a summary or something I can use. Let's just put it this way, the more interesting/humorous your review is, the more likely I am to use your suggestion. XD (And please don't say America or Canada, my OC Mexico is their big sister so...yeah...) (And another thing, try to keep the trolling to a minimum. *looks at Jywy and Epic. F. Awesomesauce*)  
**

**Please review!**


	10. Two Worlds

**This is for the guest who requested I ship my OC Mexico with someone and Jywy who gave me the idea.**

**Song: Two Worlds**

* * *

The other nations just can't understand it. It's just so strange, so _different _and unexpected. How could it have come to be? And how long could it possibly last. How was it that quiet, polite, introverted Japan and loud, brash, outgoing Mexico…could be a couple?!

They are completely, totally different! Their mannerisms, their food, their entire cultures are entirely dissimilar! America will always laugh and shrug whenever anyone asked him how they became a couple. "It's the Mexican charm I guess," he would say. China will wisely say, "They must have their reasons," when he was asked. And he is probably right. Looking at them though, you can tell how awkward it is for them sometimes.

For instance, Mexico is a touchy feely kind of person, Japan is most definitely _not_. More than a couple of times she has approached her boyfriend with open arms only to have him flee from her. Mexico, being a sensitive person (not that she would ever admit it of course), often felt abandoned or unloved and took it out on America and Cuba. There are also times when Japan will be horrified by her lack of tact in front of his family whenever she came to visit. Luckily, North Korea and Hong Kong never seem to mind and China is usually too busy to notice.

But there are things that they like about each other, their food for example, or their art. Japan admires Mexico's fearless nature while Mexico appreciates having someone who will listen to her problems, no matter how trivial they seem. And of course there are times when they were alone and Japan will allow Mexico to kiss and cuddle with him. In turn, Mexico tries to be calm and collected. They rarely argue or get into fights because they both know that the other tries to be better, and that is enough. So maybe it isn't so strange that two worlds could so easily coincide. Maybe it was even natural. But what does it matter? It's love, simple as that. You can see it in that way they hold hands, when Japan leans in to whisper something to Mexico that makes her laugh and blush, or when they sneak out of meetings early (using ninja techniques that Germany can't detect no matter how hard he's tried).

Some people say that love is supposed to change you, which in this case is true. Japan is slowly becoming more and more open and talkative. Mexico is becoming less of a hot head (a miracle America and Cuba were grateful for) under Japan's calming influence. There are times she still causes a ruckus though. Like the time she announced their engagement, or the time months later she came into a meeting with a baby bump.

It's amazing what love can overcome isn't it? These two different worlds are going to have a family.

* * *

**Ugh, it was so difficult to pick who to ship her with. SO. FREAKING. DIFFICULT. So in the end I decided to write one for each of them! Fear not Epic F. Awesomesauce and Starfire67, I will also be writing your suggestions. And of course, if anyone else has requests I will be writing them. Also, if you want to request a song that I've already written about, I'll write it again if it has a different pairing, songs can be interpreted differently after all! **

**Please review!**


	11. He's A Pirate

**I feel so guilty for not posting something sooner! Starfire67, I'm almost done with your request, I promised! As for Epic...I'm working on it...^^' This is a one shot I wrote a looooooooong time ago.**

**Song: He's A Pirate**

* * *

The courtyard of the fort was packed with townsfolk and soldiers alike to witness the hanging of the infamous pirate Arthur Kirkland. This terror of the Caribbean had finally been captured by the fort's own Commodore Alfred Jones. The drummers rattled out a harsh beat. The sun reflected sharply off the barrels of the guns and any other metal. Arthur Kirkland stood on the platform with the noose hanging inches from his face. His fair blonde hair looked ironically angelic in the sunlight and his brilliant green eyes flashed mischievously. He smirked back at the people staring at him, well, more like glaring. But that was understandable, seeing as how his latest escapade had been on the island. And what an adventure _that_ had been. In the end, he'd found the girl of his dreams and been the richest pirate this side of the Atlantic Ocean…until the Commodore caught him. Ten minutes after to be exact.

He glanced at the hangman next to him and his smirk faded a little. Three hundred pounds of pure muscle stared back at him. _Ah well, you've had a good run Artie,_ he comforted himself. _Even you can't escape this one alone, and at least she's safe._ A rather prissy man with black hair and a mole on his chin walked up to the platform and unrolled a piece of paper.

"Arthur Kirkland," he intoned.

Arthur rolled his eyes and muttered, "Captain. _Captain_." Honestly, was it that hard to remember? The man continued though a stress mark on his forehead told that he had heard the remark.

"Let it be known that you have been charged, tried and convicted of willful crimes against the crown." Several crowns actually, but Arthur didn't think this was the best time to mention that. "Said crimes being numerous in quantity and sinister in nature."

A small figure, their face concealed by a long black cloak, weaved its way through the crowd toward the gallows. People gave the person several sidelong glances but otherwise paid no attention to them. The person glanced upwards just in time to see a blue and green parrot fly over the wall and land on one of the flagpoles. A small smile graced their features and they continued their meandering path until they were right in front of the crowd.

"-The most grievous of these to be stated forthwith." Arthur finally looked up from the crowd and looked straight ahead. Halfway up the steps to the fort, standing ramrod straight, Commodore Jones stared back. He was fairly young, only twenty seven, but in Arthur's humble opinion, he acted far too old for his age. He had dirty blonde hair that was smoothed back except for one unruly cowlick. His sky blue eyes seemed to bore into Arthur's forehead and a smug smile flickered in the corners of his mouth. There were stories about Alfred F. Jones. People said that no man that crossed swords with him could win…not that Arthur would know, the Commodore had captured him by aiming his pistol at his head. Arthur was still sore about that. It was practically cheating, he had done the same himself plenty of times… but he was a pirate. He had expected better from the Commodore.

"Piracy, smuggling, forced escape-" The list went on for about a minute with Arthur vaguely listening as he gazed up at the sky. "-Impersonating an officer of the Spanish royal navy, impersonating a cleric of the Church of England." Arthur grinned and bit back a laugh. That had been fun. "Sailing under false colors, arson, kidnapping-" He bit back a cry of protest. It had been kidnapping in the beginning, but by the end of it she had been quite willing to stay-

"-And general lawlessness. And for these crimes, you have been sentenced to on this day," The man paused for effect and glanced at Arthur. "To be hung by the neck until dead. May God have mercy on your soul." There was a spacious pause as the man rolled up the parchment. Then the drums beat faster.

_Ratta-tatta-tatta-tatta-tatta-tatta-tatta_

The hangman shoved Arthur forward and secured the noose snugly about his neck. The hooded figured drew a sword from their belt and raised it about their head. People around the stranger screamed and backed away. Soldiers shouted and the Commodore rushed forward through the crowd. Like a bolt of lightning, the sword zipped through the air and pierced the wooden beam under the platform. The hangman, seeing the commotion, quickly pulled the lever and Arthur dropped… only for his feet to land on the sword, sparing his neck.

The hooded figure raced up the stairs, drawing another sword. The hangman grabbed an axe and swung at the cloaked criminal. Instead of striking flesh, the axe sliced through the rope holding Arthur and he fell with a thump to the bricks below. The Commodore and a few soldiers had just reached the platform when a quick shove from the hooded person sent the hangman crashing on top of them. Arthur sprang up and cut his bounds with the sword still stuck in the wood. He pulled it out and turned to face his rescuer who had just jumped from the gallows.

Vivid violet eyes met green and Arthur grinned in surprised delight. He couldn't see their face under the shadow of the cloak but he didn't need to, the eyes were enough. He tossed them the end of the rope that would have been his death and they charged forward. Moving in sync, they stretched the rope taut and tripped five guards coming their way. The wrapped two more around a stone pillar and then they ran up the stairs to the top of the wall. But waiting for them at the top was Commodore Jones. Arthur leaned against the wall and tried to catch his breath. He didn't need to look to know that soldiers were waiting for them at the bottom. He grinned and said,

"Honestly Commodore, one would think that you had a grudge against me." Alfred grimaced and drew his sword.

"Oh yes, and you would too if a man kidnapped then attempted to seduce your sister."

"'Attempted'? I believe 'attempted' means 'tried to'. I 'did' mate." Arthur shot back. Alfred glowered at him and cast a curious glance at the cloaked brigand.

"No matter, it seems there will be two corpses hanging from the gallows today. You can't escape, no man has ever bested me in combat."

The figure grabbed the edge of their hood and ripped the cloak off, in its place stood a young woman with long, curly blonde hair wearing a man's shirt and breeches. She raised her sword and said, "I am no man."

Alfred stumbled back in shock, "M-Madeline?!" he yelled. She rushed forward up the few remaining stairs and with a flick of her wrist disarmed him. She pressed the edge of the blade to his throat.

"All of you back!" She yelled to the soldiers. They quickly obeyed and Arthur sauntered up the steps and leaned against the stone railing. Below he could see the sea…and their escape.

"How could you Madeline?" Alfred asked in amazement. "How could you side with this-this scoundrel?" Arthur pressed a hand to his chest in mock hurt.

"I'm sorry brother," she said, "I know this is your duty. But I can't let you." She looked at Arthur and he smiled back lovingly. "He's a good man, an honorable one. He's not a scoundrel…he's a pirate. And he's the only one I want." She finished the last part in a whisper, her cheeks turning crimson. Arthur took this as the signal to be off and he jumped onto the stone railing. Looking down at the whole courtyard, he shouted,

"This is the day you will always remember as the day you-" His parting shot was cut off with a yelp as he lost his balance and fell into the ocean below. Madeline rolled her eyes and jumped after him. Alfred rushed to the railing and saw them surface. Coming in to the harbor was a ship with black sails, sporting the skull and crossbones. Madeline and Arthur grinned at each other and began swimming towards the ship.

"What's your plan of action?" One soldier asked. Alfred looked at the two tiny figures. His mind battled between what his duty was and what he knew was right. He had seen how they looked at each other, he remembered all those days Madeline had spent trying to convince him to let the pirate free. And he knew deep inside that they loved each other with more passion than could ever be conveyed through words. He slowly turned around and began walking down the steps. "Sir?" The soldier asked, confused by the lack of response.

"I think we can afford to give them one day's head start." He said, a wry smile on his lips.

* * *

One of the crew threw a line out to Arthur as they drew near. He grasped it firmly in one hand and held the other around Madeline's waist. At least ten other crew members grabbed a hold and pulled them up so quickly they shot up halfway to the mast before they landed on the deck. Arthur's first mate, a German named Gilbert, squeezed them both in a tight hug. "Ksesesesese! Zhat vas awesome!"

Arthur glared at him, "I thought I told you to stick to the code." he said.

Gilbert shrugged and answered, "We figured zhey were more actual…guidelines." He handed Arthur his weathered tricorn hat and another member of the crew gave him his coat. "Welcome back Captain Kirkland," Gilbert said, pointing toward the wheel.

Arthur grinned and pulled Madeline along with him. He glanced back at the crew and roared, "On deck you scabrous dogs!" Everyone cheered and ran to their duties. Arthur gazed out at his beloved sea and pulled Madeline closer. She giggled and kissed his cheek. "Let's go meet that horizon," he murmured, pulling out a compass. This was a very special compass, one given to him by the faeries. With it, he could find any treasure. He began to hum out the tune to a half forgotten song. He spoke the last line with his trademark smirk.

"Drink up me hearties. Yo ho!"

* * *

**The only time I ever like Maple Tea is when it's about pirates. And the characters just fit this and I really love the ending of the first Pirates of the Caribbean so...this came to be. XD**

**Please review! **


	12. One Jump Ahead

**I finished it! Finally! It took forever for me to get the song and then forever to write it since school is stupid and gave me lots of homework. This is for Starfire67.**

**Song: One Jump Ahead**

**RoMex and GerIta if you really squint**

* * *

"Stop thief!" A guard shouted. Romano ignored him and sprinted out of the market and into a nearby alley with two loaves of bread in his hands. He just had to get out of sight and he would be fine. He knew this city better than anyone, except maybe his sister.

His sister Feliciana…who was very sick.

Romano flinched as an arrow zipped by his head, ruffling his hair on the way. Jeez, didn't they understand he was broke? He wouldn't steal stuff if he had a way of buying them. He didn't _like _being a criminal, he didn't _want _to live on the streets. He wished he had a job, some way of earning a living. He wanted a home where he and his sister could live without getting exposed to the elements and not having to worry about soldiers arresting them. He zipped into another alley and ducked behind some crates. The sharp scent of tomatoes wafted from the crates and made Romano's mouth water. He loved tomatoes, his grandfather had grown them in his garden before he – Romano curled up into a tiny ball and waited breathlessly as the guards ran past. He heard two of them stop.

"Where did he go?"

"He can't have disappeared!"

The other cursed, "Street rat… let's try down here." Romano waited a minute after they faded out of hearing before standing up. How dare they?! He wasn't a street rat and neither was Feliciana! He choked back tears and ran in the opposite direction.

**_Time Skip_**

Romano stopped behind a seedy looking tavern and walked to a pile of ripped and worn blankets. He pulled them back a bit to reveal his twin sister Feliciana. Romano gnawed his lip and looked down at her. Feliciana's lips were chapped and dry, so dry that they were cracked in several places and beads of blood could be seen. Her cheeks were flushed and his breathing hoarse and uneven. Romano set the bread aside and checked her pulse, it was weak and erratic. Romano lifter his head and looked around for some water, but there was none to be found in the immediate area. Feliciana's eyes fluttered open.

"Romano…?" she croaked.

Romano hushed her and began tearing up a loaf, "It's okay sorella, I got some food." He looked back at the tavern, "Did anyone bother you?" Feliciana shook her head. Romano held a piece of bread to her mouth, but Feliciana turned her head away and whined in discomfort. Panic fluttered in Romano's chest. Feliciana was always hungry, _always_, if she didn't want to eat…

No, he couldn't accept that! She was going to get better! But she needed a physician and Romano didn't have anything that could possibly pay for medicine. Romano cradled Feliciana and thought about his options. There was no way he could steal money from ordinary folks, and as for nobles...he shuddered at the thought of high walls and fierce dogs that guarded their estates.

He was so lost in thought he didn't heard them until they were upon him.

A large hand caught the collar of his shirt and yanked him into the air. Feliciana fell back to the ground with a gasp and writhed in pain. Romano vaguely saw the faces of the guards from earlier and he barely had time to curse at them before an iron clad fist collided with his skull.

**_Time Skip_**

"Wake up, scum!"

Romano gasped in shock as cold water hit his face. Groaning softly he tried to clutch his head but he couldn't move his arms. He tried opening his eyes but only his right eye responded, the left one seemed to be swollen shut. Looking at his arms, Romano realized that he was on his knees and his arms were bound between two wooden poles. A crowd was gathered around him in a wide circle, held back by a ring of guards. A few of the townspeople looked at him pityingly, others sneered at him. Some glared at him, some glared at the guards.

What, where was Feliciana?! Romano looked up at the guard standing on his right. "Where's my sister?" he growled.

The guard smirked, "That other one? Tch, we left him where she was. It was obvious she was done for." Romano jerked forward against the ropes holding him. The guard brought his spear around and knocked the butt of it into his thin chest. "Save your energy thief, you'll need it."

There was a hush in the crowd and Romano saw them make a path for someone. A large hooded man dressed entirely in black stalked up to the path to where Romano was tied. He held a coiled whip in one hand and a sword in the other. Another guard, an older man with gray hair, stepped forward and gestured to the sword. "Hold, this is only a first offence." The giant shrugged and tossed his sword aside making several peasants stumble back as it clattered to the ground. He circled Romano for a bit, slowly uncoiling his whip. Romano gulped when he noticed that the whip was tipped with metal at the ends. This was _really _going to hurt. The giant finally stopped behind him and ripped off the back of his shirt. Goosebumps rippled over Romano's back and he gritted his teeth, he wasn't going to give them the satisfaction of crying out. The giant raised his arm his powerful shoulders flexing-

_CRACK!_

"Mmph!" Romano was thrown forward by the force of the blow and starts danced in front of his eyes. The pain was worse than he had imagined. It felt like searing flames were having a fiesta on his back.

_CRACK!_

Don't yell, don't give them the satisfaction.

_CRACK!_

You have to get back to sorella.

_CRACK!_

Just focus on breathing. In…Out…In…

_CRACK!  
CRACK!  
CRACK!_

* * *

Maria looked out the window at the city around her, swaying a bit as the carriage rocked and swayed over the bumpy road. She wished she wasn't stuck in a carriage wearing a stifling red velvet dress in the middle of the city. If she had her way, she'd be wearing a tunic and breeches and riding on her horse far away from here. But as the teenage daughter of a nobleman, and a general at that, she had long passed the age where such amusements were acceptable. She brushed back some dark brown hair and looked at her father across the coach.

Antonio Fernández Carriedo was a handsome man with curly brown hair and green eyes, which were currently closed because he was sleeping. His left leg was stretched out on a pillow and the knee was twisted and buckled slightly; a lasting reminder of one of the many wars he'd fought in. He smacked his lips and shifted his head slightly as a small smile crept onto his features. Maria smiled, the sight of her father so relaxed was a pleasant and rare one. People said he'd been a happy-go-lucky man in his youth…before the military had hardened him.

A crowd gathered in the market caught Maria's attention and she turned to look. She bit back a gasp at the sight of a young man, maybe even her age, being whipped. She looked at him closely, his head was bowed though so all she could see was his auburn hair. Maria winced as each sharp crack ripped through the air.

She opened the carriage door and jumped out, causing the driver to pull up abruptly in alarm. Her father's manservant stepped down, "Lady Maria! What on earth-" Maria waved him off and ran into the crowd. The common folk stared at her fine clothes but allowed her to pass. She stopped right in front of the boy and looked up at the giant black clad man. His hand was raised to whip him again and he froze at the sight of the noblewoman.

"This is not a sight for gentle eyes, my lady," an older guard rumbled, motioning for Maria to move back with his free hand. Gentle eyes indeed! As a general's daughter she had seen worst than a whipping. Maria looked down at the boy's torn up back then looked around at the guards.

"What is his crime?" she asked.

The older guard spoke up, "Thievery."

"And is this his first offence?"

"It is."

Maria's eyes grew cold, "Are you aware that the punishment for a first offence is ten lashes?" She gestured to the boy's back, "This is considerably more than ten!"

The giant sneered beneath his hood, "And how would a woman know this?" Maria shivered at the sound of his voice, it was sharp and cold, like a serpent. A poisonous one.

A voice rang over the square, "Because she is my daughter!" The sound of this particular voice sent a wave of relief through Maria. General Carriedo stood at the edge of the crowd, leaning on his "cane". After he'd injured his leg, Antonio has refused the offer of a regular walking stick and instead used his old war axe to help him move around. It was five feet long from the bottom of the staff to the tip of the blade. The blade was nicked and dented in places but it still retained a razor sharp edge. The crowd parted like minnows in the presence of a shark as he limped forward. The giant finally lowered his whip and Maria took the opportunity to kneel next to the boy.

She tilted his chin up to get a better look. One of his eyes was swollen shut and a nasty bruise covered his whole cheek. His other eye was hazel and glazed over in pain. He stared at her in daze, seemingly unable to comprehend what was going on. Maria tugged at the ropes that held his arms but they held firm.

"This may be the first time this rat's being punished, but he's been seen stealing before," the giant explained. Antonio looked at him stonily,

"Be that as it may, it looks to be like you've more than covered ten lashes. The boy's back looks like a slab of butchered meat. If fact, this cruelty could also be considered criminal." He stared at the giant and the guards. Most of the guards had the decency to look guilty, but the giant glared at Antonio angrily, his whip hand twitching. Maria held her breath and looked back and forth between her father and the giant. Surely this man wouldn't be foolish enough to try and fight a noble? She shuddered at the thought of what could happen, they would probably kill each other!

The clatter off hooves caught everyone's attention and the crowd parted again to allow a horse and rider pass. Maria stared at the newcomer's horse, it was a large grey stallion, on its saddle hung a shield; a warrior then. Looking up she say the man was wearing armor, was he a knight? He reined in his horse and removed his helmet. Now that she could see his face Maria easily recognized him. It was Sir Ludwig, a blonde haired, blue eyed knight and a good friend of her father. Many of her aunts had hinted that he would make a good husband for Maria but she felt nothing but friendship for him. He surveyed the scene in front of him. "I heard a disturbance. Is everyzhing alright?" he rumbled.

Antonio nodded, "Oh yes, we were just finished here. Right?" He smiled cheerfully at the giant. The giant seemed to lose his nerve in the presence of another warrior; he ran his hand along his whip – splattering nearby onlookers with blood – and turned to walk away.

"Wait, what is your name, good sir?" Antonio asked. Maria could see the lines around his mouth and eyes harden; a sure sign of contained rage. The giant paused for a second,

"That is my business."

With a shrug, Antonio waved him away, "It doesn't really matter. Someone like you is hard to miss." The giant sneered again and waded through the crowd until he rounded a corner of the street and was out of sight. The onlookers slowly departed in clumps, chattering and whispering. Antonio let out a sigh of relief and motioned for his manservant to come close. "Find out who that man is, discreetly," he ordered.

Maria paid no attention to his next words. She focused all of her attention on getting the boy free from the ropes. His head was swaying and he looked seconds from passing out. A large hand appeared on her shoulder and she looked up to see Sir Ludwig kneeling next to her. He pulled out a knife from his belt and cut the ropes. The boy fell forward and Maria caught him. Blood dribbled from his back but many of his smaller cuts were already starting to scab over.

"Ve need to get him to a physician," Ludwig said.

As soon as the word 'physician' left Ludwig's lips an electric jolt traveled through the boy's body and he jerked his head up. "Feliciana!"

Maria looked at him in shock. He seemed to be wide awake now, his eyes were wild and his chest heaved. "M-m-my sister!" he stuttered. "Mi sorella…she's sick!" One of his hands gripped at Maria's skirt. "Please! Please, she'll die!"

Ludwig leaned forward, "Vhere?"

"B-behind an inn…"

"Vhich inn?"

The boy shook his head helplessly, "I can't read…"

"What was on the sign?" Maria asked kindly.

"A horse…?"

Maria swung her head around to look at Ludwig, "The Inn of the Prancing Pony!" Ludwig sprang to his feet and ran to his horse.

"I'll get her!" he said as he mounted. All of the energy in the boy's body seemed to seep out of him and he slumped against Maria. She lifted his head as saw he was really going to pass out this time.

"Wait! What's your name?" she asked quickly.

His eyelids drooped and lost focus. "R…Romano…" he breathed before he fell unconscious.

Maria looked up at her father, "Papa, he needs a physician!"

Antonio nodded and pointed to a few nearby servants. "Carry him to the carriage, and mind his back!" Maria reluctantly allowed them to lift Romano and as soon as he was lying face down on one of the carriage benches she lifted his head so it was cradled in her lap. She ignored the bloodstains on her dress as she dabbed at is back with several handkerchiefs. Romano whined a bit a frowned in his sleep.

"Shh…it's okay Romano." Maria soothed. Antonio looked at the boy curiously and wondered why his daughter felt such a need to protect him. He shrugged and signaled to the driver to get going. As they headed to the physicians shop Maria smoothed back Romano's hair and whispered to him the whole time.

"Shh…it's okay. I'll protect you, Romano."

* * *

**I think I'm evil. Seriously. ._. I'M SORRY ROMANOOOOOOOO! DX**

**I'm considering making a second part to this and focus on the GerIta part of the story, but I dunno if anyone would be interested.**

**I hope you like this Starfire67!**

**Please Review!**


	13. A Whole New World

**EPIC I FINISHED YOUR REQUEST! X3 And I actually really like how it turned out! BUT YOU GOT THE 13TH CHAPTER! OAO BAD LUCK! XD  
**

**Song: A Whole New World**

**Mexico/Australia **

* * *

Maria held her breath as Gandalf raised his staff, "YOU SHALL NOT PASS!" She knew what was coming, and she knew she couldn't stop it, even if she wanted to. Gandalf the Grey needed to become Gandalf the White. The balroc of Moria raised its fiery whip and-

"That must be a good book, huh?"

Maria looked up quickly and snapped the book shut. She blinked in confusion as the setting changed around her from a dark and dangerous mine to a sunlit beach. She was sitting on a large flat rock near the water's edge and the man who had so rudely interrupted her was leaning against it, the lower half of his body still in the water. He had brown hair which had two locks that stuck up in the front despite it being wet, pale green eyes and thick eyebrows. He grinned charmingly and winked at her.

With a huff Maria scooted back from the edge of the rock. Honestly, she'd come out here to get away from such idiocy! "Who are you and what do you want?" she asked bluntly.

The man put a hand to his (very muscular) chest in mock hurt, "I only wanted to know if it was a good read!" He reached out a hand to touch the book and Maria drew it back before he could drip seawater on it.

"It's one of the best books out there, Lord of the Rings to be exact," she snapped.

The man's eyes lit up, "I think I've heard of it! People say the movies are bloody brilliant!" Maria rolled her eyes. Great, he was illiterate as well as egotistic. "I don't spend that much time on books and the like," he continued. "I prefer to swim."

Maria softened a bit and looked at the waves lapping around her rock. "I can understand that I guess. The ocean is so peaceful."

The man chuckled, "It may be on the surface, but there's a whole world underneath with plenty of dangers for the more adventurous bloke."

Maria smirked, "And I suppose you're one of them?"

"Reckon! And what are you?" He looked Maria up and down and his face fell a bit, "Oh no, you're one of those sensible types aren't you? The kind who believe in science and never do anything interesting!" Maria bristled at this. How dare he?! She was reading a fantasy book wasn't she?!

"Listen you pendejo-" she began. The man laughed and held up a hand.

"I was kidding! Nah, you're not one of 'em. You're one of them shy types who just need to take a chance sometimes." He spoke these last words so sincerely that Maria blushed and looked away. How on earth could he know that? Everything about him seemed so…different.

"So what if I am? Please leave so I can read." _Please, please leave. You're making me dizzy just by being so close!_

The man looked at her like she was crazy. He leaned closer and Maria scooted back a bit more. She didn't trust this stranger, especially when he was so close. N-not that she was affected by his masculine beauty in any way! He was an idiot after all. "You've been reading for hours Sheila!" he exclaimed. Maria looked at him wide eyed.

"How would you know that? Have you been watching me this whole time?!" That was it. She got to her knees and tried to stand up but the man grabbed her arm.

"Wait! I didn't mean to frighten you!"

"Let GO of me!"

She struggled against his firm grip, dropping her book in the process. He let go of her just as she heaved backwards. Maria was thrown off balance and tumbled off the rock and into the water. She squeezed her eyes shut as the water stung her eyes. She tried to swim back to the surface but she couldn't tell which way was up. Panicking, she opened her mouth to scream and water flooded down her throat. Something caught her around the waist and she felt herself being hauled upward. Her head broke the surface of the water and she gagged and struggled to breath. Whatever was carrying her pushed her until she was lying on the sand.

Something smacked into her back sharply and water poured out of her mouth. Maria gasped and felt the sweet relief of oxygen in her desperate lungs. She coughed and hacked for a good two minutes while her rescuer patted her back and brushed the hair out of her face. Her blurry eyes cleared and she recognized it was the annoying man, even though she could only see his face from where she lay. After a while he started whispering so low she almost didn't catch it. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean- I only wanted to…" He broke off and looked away. Maria was amazed to see tears fill eyes. He slide away and seemed ready to escape into the water.

Maria lurched to her knees and reached out to him. "Wait! What did…you…" she trailed off and gaped at him. Well, to be accurate, his tail. Yes, instead of legs he had a tail. It had dark indigo scales that glittered in the sun. The man, no, _merman_, watched her apprehensively. "Wow…" she breathed. Her hand moved of its own accord to his waist where the scales seamlessly turned into skin. There was no doubting it, he was real. The merman flinched at the touch but he allowed a small smile to return.

"You're not…afraid?" he asked. Maria shook her head quickly.

"Not at all! I've always dreamed of finding- I mean, this is just so…" she stammered and tried to think of something intelligent to say. "Um…now I see why you don't read much." _Is that really the best you could think of?! Idiot!_

But the merman just laughed in relief. "I'm glad, I was afraid you'd be afraid and never come back here. Then I'd never be able to see you again."

Maria put her hands on her hips, "So you WERE watching me!"

The merman flushed a dark red and rubbed the back of his neck, "Ah…you see, you always come here and sit for hours on end. It was always so fun to watch you read, you're face changes when you read you know. I could always tell what was going on in a book by your face, it would get angry or excited or sad…I saw you cry a few days ago."

"What? Oh yeah… I just finished reading Old Yeller."

"So today I decided to actually talk to you. I never imagined you would figure out so quickly." He looked down at his tail and Maria did as well.

"What's it like living in the ocean?" she asked.

He smiled, "It's amazing! I can show you if you'd like!"

Maria looked at him nervously. "Uh uh, I can't breathe underwater like you can. And I don't even know your name!"

The merman smiled and held out his hand, "I'm Ralph, and you're Maria, right?" she nodded. "I _can _show you…do you trust me?"

"What?!"

"Do you trust me?"

Maria looked at his outstretched hand, then at his face. His eyes held no deceit, only kindness and adventure. She took his hand and allowed him to pull then both into the ocean until she was up to her chin. "Ralph! I really can't breathe underwater!" She felt panic flutter in her chest again as he let go of her hand and swim around her for a bit before coming back to face her. Then Ralph did something unexpected.

He kissed her.

Maria froze for a few seconds before her eyes closed and she melted into his embrace, playing with his hair and pulling her closer. After a while the parted for air and Maria leaned her head against his chest. "I think I'm seeing stars!" she gasped.

"Well, that might be the effect of my spell, love."

Maria looked up at him and opened her mouth to ask him what he was talking about, but before she could Ralph dived and pulled her under the water. Maria closed her mouth as water entered her lungs and…she could breathe. Hesitantly she opened her mouth and tried again. Yes, it was real, she was breathing underwater. Ralph grinned as she looked around the underwater world. "We have one hour," Ralph whispered.

Maria grinned, "Show me everything."

* * *

**I hope this satisfies you Epic! Cuz I'm not writing another Australia/Mexico chapter! (I kid, I kid! XD)**

**Please review!**


	14. So This Is Love

**Hey Bookworm213! I finally finished your request! XD And now that school is almost out I will be able to write more frequently! ...If I'm not lazy. /shot/**

**Song: So This Is Love**

**Canada/Ukraine**

* * *

Ukraine adjusted her half mask and held on to Russia's arm. She looked at the dancing nations around her and marveled at their grace and elegance. This masquerade party seemed to have brought out the best in everyone. Fine silk dresses and perfectly tailored suits was the norm and nations that usually avoided one another danced together, safe behind their jeweled and feathered masks. Ukraine looked down at her own dress and sighed. To be sure, it was a stunning thing; light blue that slowly faded to a sunny yellow and dripping with small topaz and aquamarine stones. She was also grateful that Russia had had the foresight to have the chest area let out when he bought it for her, but… the fact her little brother had bought it for her bothered her. And she felt out of place in this flimsy thing, she would have much preferred her sturdy work boots to her slippers and her overalls to her feathered mask.

_I probably look ridiculous, _she thought sadly. _Like a pigeon trying to wear peacock feathers._ She let go of Russia's arm and moved to one of the sides of the room. She recognized almost everyone there; Mr. America was wearing his usual stars and stripes and Mr. England was wearing a green suit with a cloak. Miss Hungary looked lovely dancing with Mr. Austria (even if she glared at Mr. Prussia whenever he tried to cut in). Uh oh, Mr. France had spotted her! She looked around wildly, trying not to make eye contact. A flicker in the edge of her eyesight drew her attention to a shadow in a corner of the room. Ukraine watched as the shadow slid along the wall and walked out a nearby archway. She hesitated for an instant before she decided to follow it. If she stayed Mr. France would probably try to grab her tracts of land again. She slipped by a few dancing couples, her chest boinging slightly, and walked through the archway.

The balcony beyond was large and very open. Ukraine looked up and watched the stars and moon for a minute before she remembered why she came out here. Now where was… There! Leaning against the railing was her shadow. She tiptoed up to it and soon realized what it was. It was a man dressed in a red and white suit. His plain red mask hid most of his face but Ukraine could make out wavy blonde hair with a lone curl that stuck out. He turned to her and smiled softly, "Hello."

Ukraine blushed and tugged at the corner of her skirt. "A-ah…hello." He sounded so familiar! She just couldn't put a name to his face… "I'm sorry, but I d-don't remember your name…" she trailed off slowly.

He smiled again but this time it was sadder. "Eh, it's okay, I get that a lot. I'm-"

Ukraine cut him off. "Please don't get the wrong idea!" Her eyes filled with tears and she flailed her arms around in distress. "I know you! I've seen you but I just don't remember your name! Oh, I suck! I can't even remember names right!" The man placed a hand to her lips to shush her.

"You've seen me? Actually _seen _me?" He asked incredulously. Ukraine nodded and this time when he smiled it lit up his whole face.

"O-of course! Why wouldn't I?"

The man's smile grew sad again and Ukraine could have kicked herself for being the cause of it. "Oh…I'm just not noticeable I guess…"

Oh. Ukraine could understand that in a way. She often got noticed, but it was for two very big, very wrong reasons. She was never noticed for herself, it was a little depressing sometimes. The band inside finished their song and started up a new one. It was a slow, romantic song. The man held out a hand to her. "May I have this dance?"

Ukraine smiled, "Yes." She placed a hand on his shoulder and flushed when he put his hand on her waist and pulled her closer. As they waltzed Ukraine noticed how graceful her partner was. His movements were fluid and precise, whoever had taught him must have been very good. She felt like a farmer next to him, a clumsy, awkward farmer. But the man didn't look at her like she was just a farmer. He looked at her like she was something to be treasured. And better yet, not once did his eyes stray to her chest! He was looking at her and only her. Who _was _he?!

Another slow dance came, and another. By an unspoken consent on both sides they continued to dance. After a while Ukraine noticed he was humming along to the song, his voice was melodic but still masculine and it make her weak at the knees. This man was driving her crazy. Her heart was beating faster every second she was around him.

Was this what love was?

Impulsively, Ukraine leaned in closer so their faces were mere centimeters from touching. Now Ukraine could see his eyes clearly, they were a deep indigo, almost purple. He leaned in too, now their lips were almost touching. Ukraine closed her eyes as the song came to an end and-

A clock struck midnight and they both jumped back in alarm. The man looked around and let go of Ukraine. "I-I-I'd better get going!" he stuttered. Ukraine watched wide eyed as he spun on his heel and ran off the balcony back into the ballroom. Her heart plummeted to the bottom of her stomach and she felt tears prick her eyes again. He was _gone_! And she didn't even know who it was! Someone walked towards her and for a split second her heart fluttered with hope…only to break again when she saw it was Hungary.

Hungary skipped to her and grabbed her hand. "There you are! It's time for the unmasking!"

Ukraine blinked, "What?"

Hungary laughed, "It's traditional to unmask and reveal yourself at midnight. It isn't really necessary since we all know one another but it's fun all the same." She tugged Ukraine into the ballroom where the other countries were taking off their masks (or trying to, Greece and Japan were trying to convince Turkey to take off his). Ukraine sighed and pulled off her mask in defeat. It was no use, even if she met him again after the ball, how would she know it was him? She pressed a hand to her heart, goodness, her pulse quickened at the very thought of him!

The countries slowly trickled out and the musicians finished their last song. Russia came up to her and held out his arm for her. Ukraine waved him away, "I'd like to walk home myself." His face took on a questioning expression, which soon turned to dread when he realized that he would have to walk with Belarus.

Said sister had already latched onto him. "Big brother~!" she purred. "Walk with me, walk with me, walk with me, walk with me, marry me, marry me, marry me, marry me!" Russia cringed and looked at Ukraine mournfully before he shook her off and ran out of the room with Belarus hot on his heels.

Soon enough Ukraine was all alone. She stayed rooted to the spot for quite some time as her mind tried to sort out her emotions. It was no use. She sighed again and started walking to the door. Unfortunately, Ukraine was still unused to walking in high heels and she fell to the ground after taking a few steps. The blasted slipper went spinning into a corner and her large skirts poofed around her like those movies about princesses. Yeah, some princess. "How on earth did I ever get through those dances?" she moaned, rubbing her tweaked ankle.

"I thought you were very beautiful."

Ukraine gasped and looked up in alarm as a familiar voice met her ears. _He _was there, kneeling next to her and holding her shoe. He gently slipped it back onto her foot and for a second Ukraine was reminded of the Cinderella story. Her whole face turned crimson when he helped her up, placing a hand on her waist to help steady her. Ukraine looked at him closely, drinking in every feature she could make out behind the mask now that the lighting was better. A flash of inspiration hit her and she reached up to grab the corners of his mask. "You didn't take it off…at midnight I mean," she chided shyly. The man's eyes widened in what appeared to be fear and his hand shot up to stop her.

"N-no! Please don't!"

Ukraine paused, "Why not?"

He swallowed and backed up a step. "I'm…not very noticeable, even with a mask. I don't want you to forget me, or even not be able to see me." His voice sounded so weary and forlorn; it tugged at Ukraine's heartstrings and she reached for the mask again.

"I could never forget you," she whispered. He looked at her solemnly for a moment before he closed his eyes and his shoulders slumped in resignation. Ukraine grasped the edges of the mask and ever so slowly pulled it off… "Canada!"

Canada peeked at her through half lidded eyes, "You remember my name?" His voice was incredulous and a bit hopeful. Ukraine brushed back some of his wavy hair out of his face and grinned timidly.

"Of course I remember."

Canada grinned back and offered his arm to her. "May I escort you home?" Ukraine gave a small curtsy and took his arm, interlocking their fingers and leaning her head on his shoulder. They both blushed at the contacted and both of their heart's fluttered with joy and something new as they walked together.

If this was love, they never wanted it to end.

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**I love how this turned out! I hope you guys enjoyed it too.**

**Please Review!**


	15. True To Your Heart

**Hey guys, guess who was lazy this week? /shot/ This one shot is for Juniper Night who wanted some Mulan-based Ameripan.**

**Song: True To Your Heart**

* * *

Hey dudes and dudettes! Amelia F. Jones here! But you guys probably know me better as the U.S. of Freaking A! You're probably also wondering why I'm tape recording all this stuff right now. Well, Iggy thought that this story I'm about to tell was so important or something that I should do something like this to make sure I don't forget it. Which is kind of stupid of him because I could never forget the way I–

**First of all, my name is Arthur, not Iggy. And second of all, you are perfectly capable of forgetting this. You forgotten much more important things in the past.**

Artie, you can't be interrupting me like this. I'll never be able to get through the whole story if you do. And there's no way I could forget this! It's the most important thing that's ever happened to me. EVER. I mean, it's about how me and–

**ARTHUR! Not Iggy, not Artie, ARTHUR. And let me just say right now that you had better call me so in your storytelling. Do you hear me?! Arthur or England, that's it!**

…Fine… old man.

**Excuse me?!**

On with the story!

* * *

Okay, so it all started in a World Conference meeting that I was hosting; which is kind of ironic because that's the most unromantic place ever. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Anyway, I'd just finished giving my speech and was arguing with Igg-, _England_ because he totally shot down all my cool ideas. Seriously, it's so hard to please that guy! He didn't like my superhero idea and he said he'd never let Tony experiment with the weather to stop global warming. Tony is a freaking genius dudes, he could totally fix our weather! France was saying perverted stuff I didn't get and Russia was scaring everyone else while avoiding his crazy sister Belarus. I'm pretty sure Germany would have stepped up to stop all of it like he usually does if the door hadn't slammed open and Japan hadn't run in.

It was weird, I totally didn't notice he'd been missing and that was strange since Japan was a good friend of mine. Sure we had our ups and downs (the less said about Pearl Harbor and Hiroshima the better) but we could always count on one another. He would watch scary movies with me and I would take care of him whenever he was sick with the power of burgers! (Don't roll your eyes Arthur, it works!) We'd even gotten to the point where Japan called me Amelia-chan instead of America-san like he did fifty years. Believe me, that's a BIG improvement for him. But I'm getting off track, Japan comes running in, bows, and starts apologizing for being late and all that. Being the hero (don't give me that heroine crap, you're can be a hero not matter what your gender), I step up and say, "Don't worry about it dude!" Japan blushed a bit (he tends to do that a lot) and sat down in his seat.

England and France were still fighting about stupid stuff and Belarus had finally gotten Russia cornered when Germany finally stood up and started yelling at everyone to be quiet. I think that dude has some serious anger issues, but I don't really know. Japan might but we don't talk about WWII for obvious reasons. Germany got the meeting back into order and I had to spend two hours listening to speeches not nearly as awesome as mine. And I had to SIT STILL or Germany would glare at me!

**Oh the horror.**

Dude! You said you wouldn't interrupt, that is so no cool! But you're right, it was pretty terrible.

**Sarcasm is a foreign language to you, isn't it?**

Sarcasm? Is that some weird British word? Anyway, the meeting finally ended and I found Denmark and Prussia. Those guys are some pretty cool dudes, together we're called the Awesome Trio. Not even the BTT can match our awesomeness, we're just that awesome.

We're making plans to hang out for the rest of the day when Japan comes up to me. He looks kind of nervous and I also noticed that he looked under the weather. "Hey dude, is something wrong?" I ask.

Japan flinched a bit and shook his head quickly, "N-not rearry Ameria-chan. I was just wondering if you could help me with something."

"Of course I can Kiku! I'm the hero!" I shout.

Japan gets even more flustered and I notice that he looks really cute like that. _Whoa! _I think. _Calm down there broseph, he's just a friend! _I wasn't in denial, I just knew that's all Japan saw me as. As for what I thought of him…well…I wasn't sure.

"Werr then…perhaps you could terr me where I could find a good restaurant," Japan says. At first I was really confused because the World Conference center offers rooms and meals for visiting countries. Japan must've sensed the mood or something because he blushed even more. "You see…I'm going on…a date!" I think my jaw dropped all the way to the floor, I know Denny and Gil's did. I mean, this was _Japan _we were talking about! The guys who senses the mood and refrains from speaking! Or touching for that matter, the dude has a thing against hugs.

So me and my buds are standing there doing our best fish impressions while Japan's getting redder by the second. Did I mention he looks really cute when he blushes?

**Yes, you have.**

Well it's worth mentioning twice. Where was I?

**Fish impressions.**

"WHO IS IT?!"

**Gah! America, you screamed right in my ear! Who was what?**

That's the next part of the story dude! We all shouted "WHO IS IT?!" at the same time. Try to keep up old man. Japan jumped about a foot into the air and looked like some caught deer or something.

Finally, he whispered, "Berarus."

Aaaaaand our jaws hit the floor again. I mean, of all the countries in the world he could go on a date with, why would it be BELARUS?! I mean _come on_! We all know she's psycho, even Russia! Especially Russia, the poor guy. After I get over this I think, _No way! There's no way I'm letting her near my Kiku! _Then I realize what I just thought, _Whoa, he's not mine gurl, if he wants to date…her…he can…I guess…_

Ya know the saying, "speak of the devil"? Well, it's like Belarus has Superman ears or something because as soon as Japan says her name she walks up and clings to his arm like a leech. She glares at me and I think everyone close by could feel the tension in the air. Finally she pulls _my _Japan away from us and says, "Come, I don't care where we go, let's just find somewhere." And then she drags him out of the room, but not before casting a looooooong glance at Russia. I guess I was staring at the door for a few minutes cuz Denny and Gil finally drag me out of the room.

Since we haven't got a plan, we decide to just walk around for a bit. Denny and Gil were having a good time, but I was feeling down for some reason, which was pretty unheroic of me. I just couldn't get Japan out of my head. I mean, Japan and Belarus together just didn't compute! There was no way they were suited for each other. Japan was a quiet, kinda shy guy and Belarus was…Belarus!

**How descriptive.**

Fine, she's a loud, creepy, psychotic, incestuous stalker. Happy?

**So you ****_do_**** know what sarcasm is.**

I looked it up on my phone.

**Of course you did.**

Whatever Eyebrows. Belarus was NOT the right girl for Kiku! He deserved someone who enjoyed his culture, like me. Someone who somewhat respected his personal space, like me. Someone he could depend on, like me. Someone who actually LIKED HIM…like me? It hit me then, as we were walking through some mall, that I…I LIKED KIKU. No, more than like, I was totally head over heels in LOVE with him! I've always known I'd fall in love sometime, the hero always does, I guess I just didn't think it would be Japan. I stopped in my tracks as I realized this and Denny and Gil looked at me.

"What's wrong America?" Denny asked.

I sat down in a nearby bench. "Dudes…I think I'm in love…with Japan!" They looked at me for a minute then at each other. Then they did something unexpected.

They laughed.

A lot.

How rude is that?!

"Ksesesese! Ve vere vondering vhen you'd finally realize it!" Gil cackled.

"Yeah, it was so obvious!" Denny hooted.

I pouted and folded my arms. "Dudes, this isn't funny! I'm in love with him and he's on a date with the worst person for him!" My heart ached as a new thought entered my mind. "What if…Japan actually likes her though," I whispered. "What if…he _loves _her?" Denny and Gil looked at each other again and sat next to me, one on either side.

"Do you really think that Amelia?" Denny asked. "I mean, it's pretty obvious that he loves you too."

My head shot up, "WHAAA?!"

Gil cut in, "Ja, not as obvious as you of course, but he loves you. We can tell."

That statement made my heart feel like it was going to take off like one of my eagles. I was so happy I wanted to run around and tell the whole world! Is there anything better than being in love with someone and knowing that they love you back? I don't think so. I jumped up and started running towards the main doors to the mall. "Come on guys! Help me find them!" Now that I knew what my heart had been trying to tell me all along, there was no way I was going to let Kiku spend more time with Belarus without telling how I felt. Even if Denny and Gil were wrong (which I didn't think about since I didn't think I could bear it) I needed to tell him and set things straight.

"Amelia, wait!" Denny called. I whirled around and looked at them. At this point I wasn't really thinking- okay, I wasn't thinking at all-

**How shocking! …What? Don't glare at me like that…Fine, I won't interrupt anymore.**

Thank you. So I start shouting; and I didn't really care about who's listening to me at this point. I didn't care that people are stopping and staring at me because at this point my mind is so confused I can barely tell up from down. Love does that ya know?

"No! I will NOT wait! I love him you guys, I love Kiku! And I don't know for sure if he feels the same way, I wish he does, I hope he does. But even if he ends up not liking me and starts avoiding me, I gotta tell him. I gotta tell him what's in my heart, or I'll always regret it! Now if you guys don't want to help that's fine, but I'm gonna find him either way!"

Gil and Denny don't seem too impressed with this, in fact, they just point to something off to my right. Irritated, I turn to look and I almost pass out when I realize that Japan and Belarus are RIGHT. THERE. In the mall. And from the look on Japan' face, I know they've heard every word I've said.

Crap.

Belarus doesn't seem to impressed either, she actually looks bored. But Japan looks…really cute actually. He's blushing like crazy and his mouth is hanging open (I also noticed how kissable his lips were at that moment). I really, really wish I could be somewhere else though, like, under a rock. For fifty years. To be fair, I didn't really have a plan on how I was going to confess my love, but it certainly wasn't supposed to be like this. I think we stared at each other for more than a minute, our faces getting redder and redder, when Belarus must have lost her patience and said, "Oh go ahead, I only wanted to make big brother jealous anyway." She turned and walked towards the doors, muttering something about using China as bait or something like that.

"And then there were two," Denny chuckled.

I looked at the love of my life, unable to turn away but so afraid of how he would react. He made the first move, walking over until we were face to face. "Do you rearry feer that way, Ameria-chan?" he whispered, his breath tickling my throat. I nodded breathlessly, taking in every inch of his face with my eyes. I saw him frown slightly and I think my heart broke, I spun on my heels and ran as fast as I could away from there. I heard him and my buds call out to me but I didn't stop. I ran to the back exit and slammed the doors open and it wasn't until I tasted fresh air that I stopped and leaned against the wall.

I felt tears drip down my face but no one was in sight so I didn't try to wipe then away. I was making those gasping, throaty noises you make right before you burst out sobbing when something flashed in front of my eyes and I squealed in shock when I realized that Japan had done one of those weird ninja moves and was inches away from me. I pulled back and tried to run again but Japan grabbed my shoulders and pulled me in for a kiss.

Can I just say he's a fantastic kisser? Seriously, he-

**Ahem!**

I could hear Gil and Denny whistling in the background but I was totally focused on my love. When we finally separated, I pulled him in closer and whispered in his ear, "So, you _do_ feel the same? About me, I mean?"

Japan rolled his eyes, "Of course, I'm sorry if you misunderstood. I was just so surprised that you loved me back." My heart fluttered with joy as we kissed again, a lighter, sweeter kiss followed by more passionate, heavier ones-

**AHEM!**

You really need to see a doctor about that cough Iggy.

**I told you not to call me Iggy!**

But the story's basically over. Me and Japan are a couple now!

_Ameria-chan, Engrand-san, what are you doing?_

**Ah, hello Japan.**

KIKUUUUUUU!

_A-Ameria! Prease, we're in pubric!_

Oh come on, it's just the old man!

**I am not old!**

Peace out dudes and dudettes! Stay awesome, AND AMERICAN!

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**And then they commenced to making out in front of England (who eventually left the room to call China and complain about youngsters these days). XD**

**Please Review!**


	16. One Jump Ahead pt 2

**Hey everybody! I'm gonna be gone all next week so I wanted to leave you guys with something. Lots of you wanted to find out what happens to Romano and Feliciana in One Jump Ahead so...here ya go! X3**

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Feliciana whimpered as pain wracked her body. Her throat was rough and parched, every part of her body ached, from her fevered head to her nerve wracked, emaciated legs. And worst of all, Romano was gone! All she could remember was that he'd been holding her one moment and gone the next. Now she was alone and lying behind a seedy inn with no one to help her. "Fratello..." she whispered, knowing that no one could hear her, "Fratello…where are you…?" A loud cough cut her off and she shivered. It was warm that afternoon but the slightest chill in the air had an effect on her.

She didn't want to die, she was scared of the idea. But she also knew that it would likely happen, and maybe it would be better if she did. Then her brother wouldn't have to constantly worry over her and she wouldn't be in pain anymore. Her grandfather had always told her that heaven was a nice place, she just hoped they would let her in. She didn't like stealing, but it was the only way to live! Well, she actually didn't do most of the stealing, that was more Romano's department. She…she was useless really, Romano never said it but she knew that she couldn't contribute to their welfare. And now she'd gotten sick, how pathetic was that?

A low rumbling sound drummed through Feliciana's hazy consciousness. It progressively got louder until she could realized that it wasn't a drum, it was the sound of a horse. It must have been a big horse because now there was a slight trembling in the ground. Feliciana got the courage to crack open one eye but immediately closed it again with a gasp. A large, grey horse was running right towards her! Feliciana curled up into a ball and waited for the pain that would come from it running her down.

…

…

…

Nothing? Feliciana opened her eyes again. She could make out the horses hooves a few feet from where she lay. She briefly wondered why the beast had stopped when she felt hands grip her shoulders and gently roll her onto her back. Feliciana blinked against the sun and tried to make out the figure before her.

Golden hair, bright blue eyes and a handsome face framed by rays of sunlight. An angel? Was he truly an angel? He looked like one, and he looked at her with such mild tenderness and compassion that Feliciana was convinced that this stranger was an angel. Had he come to take her to heaven? Was she going to die now? Her angel lifted her up in his arms and she heard him speak to her but by now her head was spinning and she felt blackness seep into the edges of her vision. Just before she passed out she lifted a limp hand and brushed the angel's cheek as a sign of gratitude.

* * *

Warm. It was very warm and soft, that was the first thing Feliciana noticed. She was lying on something soft and covered with what felt to be wool blankets. She blinked the fog out of her eyes and looked around. She was on a bed, an actual bed, not the ground or some pallet. The room around her was a curious one, it was small with many cabinets and cupboards leaning against the walls and allowing only a faint amount of light in from the windows; baskets filled with herbs hung from the ceiling. Different smells, some sharp and bitter, others sweet and soft, curled around her in the air. A door to her left opened and she saw a young man with ashy gray hair and violet eyes. On his head was a small black and white bird with a funny beak. The man smiled at Feliciana and walked to her bedside. "How are you feeling?"

Feliciana sat up and thought about it, her throat was still sore but it was much improved, and her head ached slightly but it was better than the throbbing pain before. She smiled in return, "I feel much better." The young man placed a hand on her forehead and let out a sigh of relief.

"Well, it looks like your fever has broken. I'll go get Lukas." He left the room before Feliciana could ask any questions, questions like; where was she? Who was he and who was Lukas? Wasn't she supposed to be dead? She remembered her angel and looked around the room as if he would suddenly appear again.

The door opened again and another man entered. His hair was a pale blonde and had a weird curl that seemed to float by his head. He pulled out several herbs from a pouch on his belt and grabbed a cup resting on a cabinet. Then the man, who Feliciana assumed was Lukas, grabbed a dipper from a nearby pail of water and poured it into the cup. He shook the cup gently before handing it to Feliciana. "Drink," was all he said. Feliciana looked at the cup and noted with suspicion that the water was now a murky green color.

"Do I _have _to?" she whined.

Lukas gave her a deadpan stare. "Unless you want to die…"

The cup was to her lips in a flash. She gagged at the bitter taste but forced herself to swallow. The other man with the bird entered and looked from Feliciana to Lukas suspiciously, "You didn't scare her into drinking your brew like you did with that last patient did you?" Lukas shrugged and pushed past him to exit the room. The bird boy sighed, this time in exasperation. "I'm sorry about that, my brother isn't much of a people person. I'm Emil."

"I'm Feliciana. Where am I? How long have I been here?" she asked, gesturing around the room.

Emil paused to pull the bird off his head, it resisted and nipped at his hand lightly but he ignored it. "This is my brother's shop, he's an apothecary. You've been here for about two days." Feliciana's eyes widened. An apothecary?! But what about the angel? Maybe he was a guardian angel… someone who protected people like how Romano protected her. Romano! Felicana whipped the blankets off and hopped out of bed. Emil rushed forward and tried to push her back. "Wait! You're not well enough to walk around yet!"

Feliciana slapped his hands away, "I need to find fratello!" Where was he?! Why had he disappeared?! Now that she was well enough to think straight thousands of scenarios raced through her head, and all of them ended with Romano dying. Hanged, beheaded, drowned, there were so many things that could have happened. She felt dizzy just thinking about it! Her legs wobbled and shook from the strain and that terrible blackness reappeared in her vision. Emil caught her around the waist and yelled to someone outside the room. The door burst open and her angel was back. He lifted her into his arms again and she had the sensation of being laid back in bed before losing consciousness again.

* * *

This time when Feliciana awoke, a new face was there. It was a young woman with straight black hair and striking brown eyes. She helped Feliciana sit up and gave her a cup of water. "Hello, I'm Maria." Feliciana accepted the drink and looked Maria over. She was obviously high class based off her clothes. Why would a noblewoman bother with a street urchin like her? And Romano! She still needed to find him!

"I'm sorry, but I need to find my brother!" Feliciana pushed back the blankets but Maria caught her hands.

"You mean Romano, right?" Feliciana looked at her, shocked, and nodded. "He's in the next room."

Feliciana's shoulders slumped for a second but she immediately tensed up again. "Is he sick?"

Maria bit her lip and looked away. "Well…he's not…_sick_…"

"He's hurt then!" Feliciana blurted out. "How bad is it? Is fratello going to die?!" Her lip wobbled and she fought back tears. Maria quickly shook her head.

"Oh no! He'll live, don't worry!"

Feliciana let out a sob and laid back into the pillows. She really wasn't strong enough for this yet. She was never strong enough. Why did she have to be so weak? She wished she could be strong like her angel…

"What happened to the angel?" she whispered.

Maria leaned in and a puzzled look crossed her face, "What angel?"

Feliciana explained. "Before I woke up here, an angel came. He must have brought me here. And then he came again when I passed out earlier."

Maria bit her lip again, but this time it looked like she was fighting back laughter. "Um…was this angel blonde, with blue eyes?" Feliciana nodded eagerly. Maria let out a short giggle and held up a hand. She tiptoed to the door and opened it a crack. Peering out, she giggled again and whispered to her, "Here's your angel!" before opening the door all the way. Feliciana saw a hallway with two men talking. On leaned against a scary looking axe while the other stood tall and straight. Her breath caught when she realized that he had golden blonde hair. She silently looked him up and down, he wore armor and the bit of his face she could see was serious and masculine.

Maria tapped on his shoulder and he turned, now Feliciana could see his blue eyes. It was her angel! But… she blushed when she realized her mistake. He wasn't an angel! He was a knight!

He caught sight of her and smiled softly. Feliciana was glad that she was laying in bed, or else her knees would have given way. He entered the room, crouching a bit to get his broad frame through and bowed to her, "I'm glad you're recovering. I am Sir Ludvig."

Feliciana looked away, suddenly ashamed, "There is no need to bow to me, kind Sir."

Ludwig raised an eyebrow. "Is zhat so?" He lifted one of Feliciana's hand to his lips and kissed it. Feliciana blushed and tore it out of his grasp.

"C-can I see Romano?" she stuttered. Maria shrugged,

"You'll have to ask Lukas." Feliciana shook her head in determination, she didn't want to be deterred by anyone. Ludwig looked at her for a moment before he lifted her up into his arms, blankets and all. Feliciana squeaked and grabbed his shoulder in fright.

"W-what are you-?!"

"You're not vell enough to valk yet. I will carry you to him."

Feliciana blushed even harder and nodded. He walked past Maria and the axe wielding man and entered a different doorway. A bed lay in the far corner, Lukas and Emil were crouched over Romano, who appeared to be sleeping on his stomach. They both turned to look at Feliciana and the knight and backed away dumbly so she could see. Feliciana gasped as she realized that his back was bruised and bloody. "What happened?! Romano!" she shrieked. Romano stirred and moaned softly.

Lukas shushed her but she ignored him. "Fratello! Wake up Romano! ROMANO!" she struggled in Ludwig's grip but he seemed to be as strong as a bear. "Let me go!" she screamed. Her fists beat against his chest (which really hurt since he was wearing armor) and scratched at his face. He winced slightly but didn't hesitate as he carried her out of the room. Feliciana gave one last lunge towards her brother before giving up and burying her face against Ludwig's shoulder. Sobs bubbled out of her throat and she wrapped her arms around Ludwig's neck, not noticing or maybe not caring about the blush on his face when she did so.

"He vill be alright…" Ludwig murmured, trying to say something comforting but falling short. What do you say to someone who's seen their brother in such a condition? Ludwig could remember worrying over his own brother whenever he'd gotten hurt. He looked at Maria pleadingly, what was he supposed to do? Maria shrugged again, she was an only child. He felt Feliciana go limp in his arms and looked down worriedly. But it seemed that she'd only passed out again, he should get her back to bed. He gazed at her as he walked, she was so fragile and helpless. Every instinct inside him had been yelling at him to protect her ever since he'd first found her lying in that alleyway. He cradled her head gently as he laid her back into the bed. He decided then and there he would guard her, though he didn't exactly know why.

Maria watched him as she leaned against the doorway. _Well, _she thought. _Feliciana has an angel after all._

* * *

**It's kind of rushed, but I wanted to get this done before I'm gone. Don't hesitate to request something however, I'll write all of them!**

**Please Review!**


	17. Good Company

**I'm back! I have blisters and sore muscles, but I'm back! And I have something for you guys until I can get a request done. This one shot is something I wrote a while ago but never really finished, so I edited it a bit and now it's ready! ...I think...**

**Song: Good Company**

* * *

Madeline looked out of the window at the rain soaked street below her two story house. Umbrella weaved their way past each other on the sidewalks and the wheels on passing cars splashed up sheets of water. The clouds hung low in the sky and a far off rumble sent faint vibrations through the air. Madeline brushed some of her wavy blonde hair out of her face and looked at the sketchbook in her hand. She wanted to draw a picture of the street but even though at eleven she was consider somewhat of a prodigy by her art tutor, she couldn't yet capture the hustle and bustle below.

With a tiny sigh she walked away from her window and sat on her bed, wrinkling the red bedspread slightly. She carelessly tossed aside her sketchbook and hugged one of her stuffed animals, a polar bear, close to her chest. Most children would be disappointed at the weather because it meant they couldn't play outside with her friends, but it didn't matter to Madeline. Due to her homeschooling and her shy, retiring nature, she didn't have any friends her age. "Well, except for you Mr. Kumajiro," she whispered to the bear. Her father had bought the bear a couple hours after she'd been born and she'd loved it all of her life. He was the perfect companion for tea parties, walks and reading aloud to. He was also good at cuddling at bedtime and had been Madeline's guardian when the monsters under her bed and in her closet made an appearance in her imagination. After her mother died, he'd also turned into her main shoulder to cry on.

Madeline's violet eyes filled with tears as she remembered her sweet, kind mother. François Bonnefoy-Kirkland had always cared for and cherished her "fille chérie" and now she was _gone_.

"Madeline! I'm going out to the store. Would you care to come with me?" Madeline flinched slightly as her father's voice rang through the house. She quickly wiped her tears away on Mr. Kumajiro's worn coat.

"Oui papa!" she answered, running out of the room and stepping lightly down the stairs. She quickly smoothed out her red and white dress before turning the corner into the hallway.

Arthur Kirkland was a proper Englishman with a shock of blonde hair and piercing green eyes that always seemed to know when you were lying. He was shrugging on his overcoat and grabbing a black umbrella from the stand. Madeline's heart sank a bit when she saw the black shirt and dress pants. After two years her father was still in mourning. He turned to look at her and smiled softly. Madeline smiled back and grabbed her own jacket. Once they were both ready Arthur opened the door, quickly opening the umbrella and stepping out onto the porch so Madeline didn't get wet. She grabbed his proffered hand and they walked in silence among the crowd.

They were almost to the store when she saw it. A cardboard box was scooted under an overhang and the words ADOPT A KITTEN had been written on the side of the box in black marker. Madeline let go of Arthur's hand and ran towards the box. "Madeline wait!" she heard her father shout but she didn't stop until she'd reached the box. Looking inside, she thought it was empty but a loud meow drew her attention to the far corner. A big Maine Coon kitten with a black ruff and glasses shaped markings around its eyes peered back at her. She smiled and held out a hand to it, her smile growing as it eagerly rubbed its head against her hand and purred. She gently picked it up and cradled it in her arms. The kitten squeaked happily and burrowed its face into her warm coat.

Arthur finally caught up to her. "Madeline, what were you thinking? Running off like that! I never would have expected–" He cut off abruptly when she turned, revealing the kitten.

"Papa, can we keep him, s'il vous plait?" she pleaded giving her best puppy dog eyes. The kitten also looked at him cocking his head to one side in an adorable "huh?" expression. Madeline wanted this kitten soooo badly, a real pet of her very own! Someone else to play with and take care of; and this kitten needed her! She couldn't leave it out in the street!

Arthur closed his eyes and scratched the back of his head, pretending to think about it. The sight of his daughter holding the cute kitten was too precious to resist, not that he was going to let her know that of course. "Will you take care of him?" he asked. Madeline nodded, her curls bobbing. "…Very well, you may keep him. Come on, let's go home, the store can wait for a bit." A bright smile lit Madeline's whole face and she hopped up and down in excitement. Arthur couldn't fight the grin forming on the corners of his mouth as he watched her rub her cheek against the kitten's.

The walk back home was a blur to Madeline and she didn't snap out of it until they were safely inside. "I imagine that poor thing's hungry," Arthur called over his shoulder as he walked into the kitchen. Madeline blanched slightly, her father was a horrible cook. They'd had to hire a cook/housekeeper after mama had died…but she was gone at the moment. She didn't want him to accidentally poison her kitten with his scones! Luckily, he came back with a bowl of milk and laid it down on the ground. The kitten practically leaped out of her arms and began lapping up the stuff like he hadn't eaten in days. "What should we call him?" Arthur asked quietly. Madeline thought about it, looking at the kitten.

"I like Alfred," she finally said.

Arthur tapped a finger on the kitten's head, "All right, I hereby dub thee Alfred." Madeline giggled and Alfred looked up and mewed in agreement. Arthur glanced up at the hall clock, "Oh, it's time for your piano practice Madeline. Don't worry, Alfred will be right here waiting," he added noticing the worried look on her face. Madeline sighed and walked towards the sitting room where the piano was. She sat down on the bench and opened her practice book. A tugging on her dress made her look down. Alfred jumped into her lap and rubbed against her belly. She giggled and held him up to her face where he began attacking her with his tongue.

"Okay Alfred, okay! I have to practice now." She placed him on the top of the piano and played the first stanza of her song. After a while she began singing along as well.

_You and me together we'll be  
Forever you'll see  
We'll always be good company  
You and me  
Yes, together, we two_

Alfred squeaked happily and tapped some of the keys with his paws. Madeline giggled again and continued,

_Together, that's you  
Forever with me  
We'll always be good company  
You and me  
Yes, together we'll be._

Alfred began dancing around the top of the piano, chasing his tail and tripping over his owns paws in the process. A full grown laugh bubbled out between Madeline's lips and she couldn't stop herself from reaching up and pulling Alfred into her lap. She already loved her goofy, cheerful kitten so much!

Just outside the sitting room, leaning against the door, Arthur was silently crying and drinking in his daughter's laughter like it was water. It had been _so long _since he'd heard her laugh like this, and even longer since he'd heard her sing out loud. When François had gotten sick, Madeline had closed into herself even more than she usually did, like a Morning Glory hiding from the sun. A knock on the door made him jump and he hastily wiped away his tears and rushed to the door. He opened it and stepped aside to allow their housekeeper, Carmen, inside. "Hello Carmen, I hope your husband is feeling better."

Carmen tucked a few hairs that had gotten out of her bun behind her ear. "Si, Lovino's much better. Thank you so much for letting me come in late to take care of him."

Arthur nodded brusquely, "Of course, an illness is nothing to be trifled with."

Carmen waved him off when he tried to help her take off her coat. "Oh it's nothing! Just a bad cold."

_That's what we thought too, _Arthur bit his lip but didn't speak. Another laugh from the sitting room caught Carmen's attention. "Is that Madeline?" she asked, her voice incredulous.

"Yes! Yes it is. We found a kitten and already she's…happier," Arthur trailed off, not quite sure what to say. Carmen just nodded and smiled.

"Well, it looks like she's in good company then."

* * *

**Just some FACE fluff with Spamano on the side (Actually, I wasn't planning on including the Spamano, but then I remembered Epic and Jywy and thought I'd add it just for them).**

**Please Review!**


	18. Something There - RusCan

**Yay! I got a request done! I'm sorry it always takes so long you guys... ;_; I don't mean to be late or anything like that. Anyway, this is for Dalvanbraginski who wanted a version of Something There with Russia in it. S/He never mentioned any particular pairing so I got to choose!**

**Song: Something There**

* * *

Madeline loved books. There were few things on the planet that she loved more than books. Scratch that, the only people she loved more than books was her brother and her father, and even then she wasn't quite sure. Perhaps then it's understandable why she was more than happy to inherit her father's book shop even when she could have gotten promising careers elsewhere. Her idea of a perfect day was being surrounded by books and occasionally helping others get good books of their own.

She had lots of perfect days.

On this particular day in fact, she was avidly reading _The Horse and his Boy _while drinking hot chocolate when the bell to her shop rang and three people stepped inside. They stomped their boots on the welcome mat to shake off any snow before tromping over to Madeline's desk. A large gloved hand slapped on the desk and Madeline finally looked up. She bit off a groan when she realized that it was Gilbert and his friends. To be fair, one of his friends was also her cousin but Francis acted like a jerk whenever he was with Gilbert. His other friend, Antonio, wasn't too bad, but he'd been worse before he'd gotten a girlfriend.

All three of them were incredibly handsome; Gilbert was albino, but his white hair and red eyes looked good on him, especially when he made them stand out by wearing dark clothing (which he usually did, he was wearing a black coat at the moment.) Antonio was Spanish by blood with curly brown hair, dark green eyes and tanned skin. Francis looked like how many people thought an angel would look with wavy blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Madeline looked a lot like her cousin except for the fact that her hair was a shade darker and her eyes were indigo. She tried to tuck a loose curl behind her hair and asked, "Can I help you with anything? Is there a book you need?"

Gilbert scoffed and leaned in closer, "Nein! I don't know how you manage to sit _here _all day, gorgeous. A girl like you should be out and about…on zhe arm of an awesome guy like me!" He wriggled his eyebrows and snatched the book out of Madeline's hands. He thumbed through it and shook his head, "Tch, not even pictures." He let to book drop back onto the desk and Madeline quickly grabbed it.

"If you're not here for books, what do you want?" she asked, trying to keep her voice polite. Gilbert leaned in _even closer _until their noses were almost touching.

"I vant you to come with me to zhe awesome party Antonio's having at his place this Saturday, at eight."

Oh NO! A date?! Gilbert had been hounding her for a while, but Madeline had thought she'd been clear about how she felt towards him. He was more of a blockhead than she thought.

Gilbert drummed his fingers on the desk impatiently, "Vell?"

"I…I…" _How do I say no while still being polite?!_

The bell to her shop rang again and with a sigh of relief Madeline looked over Gilbert's should to greet the new customer…and promptly wished that she still had to face Gilbert. It was _him_. Ivan Braginski wasn't a regular customer at her store, but whenever he came Madeline couldn't wait until he was gone. He was tall, extremely tall, with ashy blonde hair and eerie purple eyes. He always wore a scarf, even in the summer, and Madeline's imagination lead her to some horrifying conclusions about why he constantly hid his neck. He'd never done anything truly alarming but his whole demeanor gave off a feeling of danger. Gilbert turned around and immediately glared at Ivan. "Vhat are _you _doing here, Braginski?" he demanded.

Ivan merely smiled back, "I'm just here to get new books. There's nothing wrong with that, da?" A creepy purple aura seemed to surround him and Madeline shivered.

Gilbert turned back to Madeline, "He's been here before?" Madeline nodded and Gilbert's glare deepened. He walked up to Ivan and looked up into his face. "Listen here loser, you keep avay from her. She's MINE." Without turning around he spoke to Madeline, "I'm picking you up a 7:30, zhat's vhen you close zhe store, right?" He didn't wait for an answer, he shot another glare at Ivan and motioned to Francis and Antonio to leave. They did so, though Francis hesitated and cast a concerned look at Madeline. Madeline sank into her seat when she realized that now it was just her, Gilbert, and Ivan.

Ivan hadn't reacted at all to Gilbert's declaration, he still had the same innocent smile he always had. His lack of response seemed to anger Gilbert further because he leaned in and hissed something to him. Madeline strained to hear what it was but they were too far away. But it seemed that it had upset Ivan for some reason because now his smile was gone. His mission accomplished, Gilbert sneered and shoved Ivan. Ivan stumbled back and hit a bookshelf wincing as several books rained down on his head and shoulders.

"Ksesese! 7:30! Be ready gorgeous!" Gilbert yelled as he ran out of the shop. Madeline groaned softly and hastened to help Ivan pick up the books.

"I'm so sorry about that! Gilbert is such an idiot, are you hurt?" She fluttered around the giant picking up any stray books. Ivan shook his head,

"It is nothing. Gilbert's personality is well known to me."

"O-oh…" Madeline cast him a sympathetic glance before placing the books on their appropriate shelves. Ivan pulled out his wallet and Madeline remembered why he was here. "What books would you like?" she asked.

"Just some from Edgar Allen Poe." The innocent smile was back.

_Why does that not surprise me? _Madeline thought. "Um, they're back there," she pointed to the bookshelves in the far back.

Ivan held up a hand to stop her from moving, "I will get them." Madeline watched as he navigated himself through her store. As she returned to her desk, she thought over what had just happened and wondered why she'd been terrified of Ivan. He was…different to be sure, but there was something else about him. She jumped slightly when Ivan returned, so lost in thought she hadn't heard him come back. He quickly purchased his books and was almost to the door when he swung around, "You don't have to go with Gilbert if you don't want to." Madeline was shocked by his sudden outburst. His voice and face were sincere and full of…longing? She couldn't really tell. Without another word, he left.

Madeline sat there for a minute, dumbfounded, before looking at her book and opening it. It was no use. The words danced in front of her eyes and made her dizzy until she finally closed it. "Oh dear…" she sighed.

* * *

Thumping bass and the smell of alcohol hit Madeline like a brick wall. She quickly tore herself out of Gilbert's grasp and found the quietest corner she could in Antonio's large apartment. It was just as well, Gilbert had forgotten all about her as soon as they'd arrived. Madeline watched the revelers cautiously. She knew many of them from school but she wasn't really acquainted with them. All of them seemed to be intoxicated, if the way they danced was anything to judge by. Soon enough she noticed a figure weaving their way through the crowd. As they got closer Madeline realized that it was Antonio. Thankfully, he looked sober enough. He grinned as he approached her.

"I'm glad you could make it chica!" he greeted, friendly as ever. "I wondered where you were, Gilbert's over there having a drinking contest with Francis. You want to watch?"

_Great…_ "No thank you. I'm fine here."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm _sure_."

Antonio shrugged, "All right then chica." He left her to visit with some other guests and Madeline sighed. This was going to be a looooooong night.

**_Time Skip_**

The party was finally starting to wind down. People were leaving in twos and threes or simply passing out on the floor. The entire apartment was a mess, but Madeline doubted that Antonio cared. He had a generous income to say the least.

"Heeeey! Maddy~!" Madeline watched Gilbert stumbled to her corner. She resisted the urge to gag at the foul smell coming from his breath when he leaned in closer to her.

"Are you enjoying yourself Gilbert?" she asked, not even bothering to hide the contempt in her voice by this point.

"Ja, ja! I need your help zhough." Madeline quirked an eyebrow. "I need to get back home, but I don't zhink I can drive." That was an understatement, but at least he was somewhat responsible. "Can you – hic – help me get a taxi or somezhing?"

Madeline nodded, grateful to leave, and started pulling him towards the door. "What happened to Francis?" Gilbert shrugged and mumbled something unintelligible. Madeline rolled her eyes and continued coaxing the inebriated man into the elevator, through the lobby to the apartment building and finally to the curb outside. Gilbert blinked against the bright lights of oncoming cars and looked blearily at an alleyway, pointing at something in it.

"Vhat's zhat?!" he yelled, going into a bumbling trot. Madeline followed him into the alley while mentally cursing all forms of alcohol. The narrow alley was dark and she couldn't see Gilbert. She was about to call out to him when something strong gripped her shoulders and slammed her against the side of a building. She gasped in alarm and tried to fight off whatever was holding her but it was to strong. Her eyes finally adjusted to the darkness and she realized that it was Gilbert who was holding her down. His eyes had turned from glazed and dull to bright and sharp. He leered down at her and pulled both of her arms up until they were above her head. Using one hand to hold them there, he used the other to capture her jaw.

"Gilbert! Let go of me right now!" Madeline demanded. Gilbert ignored her, choosing instead to crash his lips against her for a sloppy kiss. Madeline let out a muffled squeal of terror and trashed against his hold. She could feel his hand wander down and start unbutton her shirt.

_NO! Please! Somebody help me!_

As if answering her prayer, something yanked Gilbert away from her and throwing him to the ground. Madeline immediately ran as fast as she could until she was back onto the sideway and in the comforting light of a street lamp. She heard faint thuds and groans coming from the alley and she tensed, ready to run back inside the building. But it wasn't Gilbert who emerged from the shadows…it was Ivan!

"I-Ivan?!What in the world-?!" Madeline gasped.

Ivan looked her over in concern, "Did he hurt you?"

"N-no…" The shock of what had almost happened hit her and tears welled up in her eyes. "He- he almost…I was…" A tiny sob escaped her throat and she threw herself into Ivan's arms. Ivan froze in shock for a second before timidly wrapping an arm around her. "T-t-thank you! So m-much!" Madeline choked out.

Ivan looked away and mutter gruffly, "Any true man would have done the same. I'm just glad I was there in time, дорогой ."

Madeline sniffled and rubbed at her eyes, "All the same, thank you Ivan. H-how did you know I was in trouble?"

Ivan shifted awkwardly, "I didn't, but I thought I was just…walk by to make sure everything was all right…"

This vain excuse didn't fool Madeline, she giggled and grabbed one of his arms. "Thank you for being concerned about me. I really appreciate it."

Ivan's cheeks turned pink and he looked away again, "Y-yes… Would you allow me to escort you home?"

Madeline looked up at her gentle giant and smiled warmly, "Gladly."

* * *

**Methinks I must needs work on my endings. Seriously, they all seem predictable and sappy! Sorry guys...I hope I did well on this Dalvanbraginski, I tried as best as I could! (*sobs* I turned Prussia into such a jerk!)**

**Please Review!**


	19. Shadowland

**I finished a request in record time guys! I'm so proud of myself! XD This is for Spunky-Eclectic-Princess42!**

**Song: Shadowland**

* * *

Emil sneezed as dust from the parched ground hit his face. He rubbed his nose and glared at the broken ground beneath him. There wasn't a speck of water to be found anywhere for miles except in deep, deep wells and even they would dry up soon. He gripped the bucket in his hand tighter and forced his eyes open even as more dust billowed up when his feet disturbed the ground. He looked around at the miserable countryside around him; the ground he was walking on used to be fields of wheat and corn and trees used to line the paths. The rivers were all dry and even though the clouds above were gloomy Emil had little hope of rain, it hadn't rained in two years.

People might think it was ridiculous that a kingdom's fortune mirrored that of their king's but it was true. Emil remembered that fateful night two years ago when he and his brother still lived in the capitol city.

_"Brother! Get up!"_

_Emil yelped in protest as Lukas shoved him out of bed. He sat up slowly and rubbed his eyes, Lukas was running around their small apothecary shop, gathering up herbs, clothes and various other items. _

_"What are doing?!" he asked. Lukas didn't pause as he explained._

_"The southern barbarians are coming; we have to get out of the city." Emil's eyes widened in shock. The kingdom had always felt threatened by the powerful country by the southern ocean, but they'd never had the audacity to attack a village, much less the capitol itself. He scrambled to his feet and looked out the window, sure enough, a mass exodus was taking place as the common folk fled the impeding battle._

_Emil looked back at Lukas, "Where will we go?"_

_"To Berwald and Tina's farm."_

_At the mention of their brother and his wife another thought popped into Emil's head. "Wait, what about Matthias?!" Matthias was their eldest brother and a captain in the army. Lukas shook his head and finished stuffing everything in a burlap bag before throwing it over his shoulder._

_"He's the one who told me to leave! Now hurry and grab your stupid bird!" He rattled his walking stick up in the rafters where Mr. Puffin's nest resided. The irate bird nipped at the stick before fluttering down onto Emil's shoulder. Lukas banged the door and charged out into the crowd. Emil ran after him and clung to his bag to keep from getting separated._

_"But shouldn't we stay to help the wounded?!" Emil yelled over the crowd._

_Lukas finally stopped for an instant. "If I thought we could win, we'd stay." He was off again, even faster than before._

_"What do you mean we won't win?!" Emil practically screamed. A woman holding a squalling baby in her arms looked at him strangely but he ignored her._

_Lukas shoved his was around a cart, "Think about it, Prince Matthew and Prince Alfred have almost half of the army up in the Northern Borders dealing with raids there. We're outnumbered. And if the king is captured and used as a hostage they'll have no choice but to surrender themselves or go into exile."_

_Emil felt a chill go through him that had nothing to do with the night air. "Y-you wrong!" he managed to choke out._

But Lukas had been absolutely right. King Arthur had been captured and his younger brothers had been banished along with some of the king's most trusted advisors, generals, and knights. The rest had been killed. The commander of the Southern army, Sadiq Adnan, had quickly and masterfully quieted any further resistance and settled in as a tyrant over their once fair land. There were rumors that the earth would continue dying until the true king was back on the throne. But what chance was there of that?

Emil sighed as he approached the pitiful well and attached the rope to his bucket. He held on to one end and let the bucket drop. A faint splash could be heard along with a distinctive thunk that meant it had hit the bottom. Emil pulled the bucket up and looked inside. Half full, that was surprisingly good. It would have been better if he'd been allowed to take both of their buckets but Tina always shot down the idea when Emil brought it up. There were other families who used this well she said, it would be unfair if they took more than they needed. _She's too kind for her own good, _he thought as he trudged back to the small farmhouse. _And I KNOW other families are taking more than we are._

Their home was small and worse for wear but it was much better than most of the houses in the area since Berwald was a skilled carpenter and blacksmith. The roof was missing some shingles but it didn't leak, the windows were cracked but their frames weren't warped and the door stuck a little when you closed it but it kept the wind out.

Emil lifted the latch and walked inside. Tina crouched over a pot on the fireplace, one hand stirring the pot while the other kept her shawl out of the reach of the hungry flames. Tina was a pretty woman with pale blonde hair and light violet eyes. She looked up when Emil entered and smiled warmly. She whisked over to him and looked inside the bucket. "Oh good! This should help fill out the soup!" Tina took the bucket and began pouring the water into the pot. "Filling out the soup" meant adding lots of water to the soup so that everyone got enough to eat even if it made the soup tasteless.

"What have we got today?" Emil asked?

Tina smiled somewhat sheepishly. "Well, I have some old chicken bones in there, the marrow is good you know, some old potatoes and…well, it _looked _like a yam…"

"So the usual then?" Emil joked. Tina laughed and waved him away.

"You imp! Keep watch for Berwald and Lukas will you?"

Emil walked back out the door and sat down on the dirt cross-legged. Propping his elbows on his legs, he watched the road and let his thoughts wander where they may. He remembered when Lukas had nursed a twin brother and sister back to health, where were they? Had they managed to survive these terrible years? Had anyone he'd known survived? Perhaps they were all dead…

Emil was interrupted from these morbid thoughts by a faint dust cloud in the distance. As it got closer, he recognized the tall, broad frame of Berwald and the smaller, slimmer frame of Lukas. Emil ran inside and started grabbing bowls since his brothers would surely be hungry. Tina had noticed them by now as well and ladled the broth into the bowls. Lukas entered first, his bag of herbs slung over his shoulder. He'd been going around the area helping those who were sick and injured while Berwald tried to find work. So far he'd had no luck; people needed a miracle, not a carpenter, and had talked of going to a nearby city to find a job. Tina always objected strongly to this, the idea of separating their family was inconceivable to her and not to be mentioned.

Mr. Puffin swooped down from where he'd been hiding on a shelf and landed on Iceland's head, a sure sign that he was just as hungry as the rest of them. Berwald was blond like the rest of them though his eyes were a curious mix of green and blue. Berwald's serious face let in a small smile as he put Tina close for a hug. "M' w'fe."

"How was your day?" Tina asked as they all sat down. Berwald was not the talkative sort so he let Lukas do the talking.

"The same as it usually goes," Lukas shrugged. _So that means nothing's changed_, Emil thought as he sipped at his stew. He realized then as he was sitting there that something needed to change. He was sick of barbarian warriors terrorizing his country, he was sick of seeing overcast skies instead of sunlight. He missed the grass and the birds, the rivers and…_freedom_. Things needed to change, and he wanted to be a part of it. People talked of how the exiled princes were trying to bargain with the Tsar from the north for help, but so far nothing had come of that. The countries across the Western Sea were too far away. That left the East…

Emil cleared his throat and glanced at Lukas who was sitting directly across from him, "Brother, do you remember those stories you told me about the East? How there were mighty warriors there?"

Lukas looked up sharply, "Yes, what about it?" Tina looked at him curiously Mr. Puffin dug his beak into Emil's hair as if he could already sense the crazy plan hatching in his head.

"Well….what if we asked them to help us?!" Emil blurted out. Tina gaped and Lukas snorted in derision.

"You're crazy, little brother. Don't you remember the wall?" Emil shook his head slowly. "Well, long ago they built a great wall around their country to keep others out. They kill any outsiders, why should they help us now?" He went back to his food, signaling that the topic was closed.

Emil felt his temper rise and he banged his fist on the table. "But that was long ago! Maybe if we try now they would help us! We just need to ask! I could go tomor-"

"EMIL!" Lukas roared, standing up and towering over his brother. "Do you even hear yourself?! Why should YOU be the one to go?!"

Emil stood as well. Tina cringed at the sheer anger radiating from the two of them and leaned into Berwald. Berwald meanwhile was watching it all with his typical deadpan expression. "Why SHOULDN'T I?" You can't treat me like a child Lukas! I want to help! AND YOU CAN'T STOP ME!" Mr. Puffin was strangely quiet, huddling up on his head. Emil flushed with embarrassment as he realized how childish he sounded.

Norway closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. He seemed to be regaining his temper, "If you want to help so badly, I will accompany you back to the capitol to see if we can find any news about Matthias, perhaps a few months from now." Emil's throat constricted, they hadn't heard any news of their eldest brother in two terribly long years. Many of their soldiers had been killed, the chances of Matthias surviving were slim at best… but still, they had to keep hoping, giving up on him wasn't an option. Lukas had already made several journeys to the city for just such a reason. "And I _never_ want to hear you talking about going on such a… a…" Lukas trailed of, trying to think of the right word.

"Qu'st," Berwald supplied. Lukas nodded and sat down.

"Exactly, a quest. Leave those kinds of things to knights, little brother." He stared at Emil so fiercely that Emil was forced into submission… for the moment.

With a snort he kicked his chair away and stomped to his room. "Fine!" he yelled over his shoulder.

Everyone else was silent at the table. Finally, Tina lifted up her bowl, "Er…would anyone like seconds?"

* * *

Mr. Puffin squawked in annoyance as Emil woke him up by lifting him out of his nest. Emil winced at the noise and hushed him, "Shh! Do you want to get us caught?!"

The sky outside had become darker than usual signaling that it was the middle of the night. Emil quickly got dressed in his sturdiest clothes before grabbing his boots in one hand and using the other to place Mr. Puffin on his customary place on his head. Creeping slowly – Lukas was a deep sleeper but it didn't hurt to be cautious – Emil tiptoed from his room to the kitchen. He reached for the latch to the door and-

"W'rn't y' g'in' ta say g'dbye?"

Emil spun around in alarm, dropping his boots. Berwald stood by the fireplace his face barely lit by the smoldering embers. He didn't look angry or concerned and Emil took that to be a good sign. "I…I don't care what Lukas says, I'm going to the East!" he hissed. Berwald nodded slowly, thoughtfully. He turned to the fireplace and tugged on one of the stones, wiggling it until it came loose. He stuck a hand inside the cavity and pulled out a small bag from within. With a jerk of his hand he tossed it to Emil who quickly caught it. The jingle of coins made Emil blink in surprise. Berwald walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

" 't's j'st someth'n I've b'n sav'n."

Emil shook his head fiercely and thrust the bag back towards his brother, "I can't take your money Berwald!"

Berwald creached out and curled Emil's fingers around the bag. "I 'nsist." Wordlessly he reached around Emil and opened the door. The muggy night air hit Emil like a brick as he finally realized what he was doing. But he couldn't turn back now. Berwald grabbed Emil and pulled him into a tight hug and whispered, "D'n't f'rget us."

Blinking back tears Emil returned the hug, "I won't. I promise." After an age passed they let go and Emil faced the world outside. One step and his journey would begin. He stepped into his boots, giving Berwald one last look. "I'll bring back help, you'll see." Berwald nodded and his eyes shone with conviction. If anyone could do this, it was his brother. Mr. Puffin nibbled on his hair and the wind plucked invitingly at his sleeves.

With a deep breath Emil took his first step.

* * *

**In case your wondering, this is set about 3-5 years after One Jump Ahead. I'm starting to really love this little world I've created guys, I'm seriously thinking of writing a full fledged story about it. What do you think? **

**Anyway, lots of stuff happened in this chapter. Lots of plot twists happened. New characters were introduced and certain questions left unanswered. What happened to the Vargas twins? Will Arthur ever regain his place on the throne or is he actually dead? What about Sir Ludwig and General Antonio, are they dead or did they escape? And who are these warriors from the East with their Great Wall? If your HongIce senses are tingling you're on the right track (SPOILER!).**

**Please Review!**


	20. Candle On The Water

**Hi everybody! I was gone on a trip to Utah and while it was fun, I had no time to write so please forgive me for being so late. *bows* This request is from Starfire67!**

**Song: Candle On The Water**

* * *

Romano didn't know it when he woke up one particular morning, but he was going to learn two important things that day. The first was that a stack of paperwork makes a comfortable pillow if one is tired enough, the second is that love is unexpected, unplanned, unforgettable... and can sometimes be confused with loathing.

"Fratello...fratello...FRATELLO WAKE UP!"

Romano woke with snort and jerked his head up. Blinking rapidly he could see Feliciana hovering above him. A few seconds later he could make out their huge office in the World Conference Center in Rome. A world conference was coming up and since the Italy twins were hosting it this year they had more work to do than ever. He looked down at the stack of paperwork he'd been sleeping on and sighed. He wiped off a bit of drool on the first sheet and glanced at Feliciana's desk. It looked like she hadn't done anything. Typical, just typical. "Hey, you know I'm not doing your work right?" he mumbled.

Feliciana nodded and her curls bobbed up and down a good five seconds after she stopped. "I know! Germany's coming over soon, maybe he'll help me!"

_Of course he'll help you! that stupid potato eater would bend over backwards to do anything you asked for all his grumbling about how you should be more responsible! _Romano shook his head in disgust but froze halfway through the motion as a thought struck him. He quickly hid the devious grin from his sister and pointed to a window. "Look over there! I see something shiny!"

Feliciana squealed in delight and ran to the window. While her back was turned Romano scooped up his remaining paperwork, tiptoed to her desk, and hid it underneath her stack. He made it back to his desk just as Feliciana turned around. "I didn't see anything!" she whined.

Romano shrugged and gave her an apologetic look. "Mi dispiace. Hey, I'm done with all of my work, I'm going home." Feliciana blinked in shock.

"You're leaving...even though you _know _Germany's coming to see me?!" Her voice was incredulous.

Romano sauntered over to the door, "Yeah, I think he can handle things here." This time he couldn't contain the smirk that forced it's way onto his face. "I hope Germany helps you with _your _paperwork." With that he practically skipped out of the room content with the knowledge that his work would get done. Feliciana thought over his meaningful sentence for a moment but quickly dismissed it and pulled out her phone to text Germany.

* * *

Romano grumbled a bit as he walked down the second flight of stairs. Italy's conference center wasn't as big as, say, America's but unlike America's it didn't have an elevator. It was aggravating to say the least. Especially since that meant admitting, mentally at least, that America was in some way better. The very thought twisted in his gut and made him more irritable than he naturally was. America, or Amelia F. Jones as she was known by her citizens, was one of the most annoying countries Romano had been unfortunate enough to meet. Loud, brash and overconfident, America was the definition of "dumb blonde". In fact, she was probably the reason that term had been coined. Everything about her annoyed Romano, from her obsession with superheroes to her cowboy boots. And she was always _smiling_. A dumb, overly happy smile.

So the last thing he expected to see was her crying.

At first he didn't know it was her that was crying. All he heard was a female voice sobbing in a long unused conference room as he walked by. At first he was tempted to walk by and leave the girl to deal with her grief by herself. He was tired and not in a very comforting mood. But then he remembered that perhaps one of the nations had gotten here early and was spending the night. As one of the hosts it was his job to make sure that everyone had a somewhat enjoyable experience in his country. _It's probably Ukraine moaning over how she loses the buttons to her shirt every time she takes a deep breath, _he thought bitterly as he opened the door a crack. It wasn't Ukraine however, whoever it was was sitting at the very edge of the long conference table, her forehead resting on the wood and her arms wrapped around it protectively. Romano hesitantly slid inside and winced as the door shut with a soft thud. The girl didn't seem to notice. She continued crying and Romano couldn't help but notice how broken she sounded. He walked around the table slowly trying to discern her identity. Her hair was too short to be Hungary's (unless she'd cut it, which Romano doubted) and it wasn't light enough to be Liechtenstein's. It was a dirty blonde and her bangs were held back by a silver pin in the shape of a star. Wait... there was only one country he knew of that wore a pin like that...

America finally noticed him when he was about a foot away from her. She tried to muffle her sobs and peeked at him from over her arms.

Romano looked back at her awkwardly, what are supposed to say to someone you find annoying when they're crying? "Uh...you okay?"

America sniffed and wiped her nose on the sleeve of her bomber jacket. She glared at him halfheartedly. "Does it look like I'm okay, genius?"

Romano immediately bristled but with Herculean effort he managed to refrain from cussing her out. "Fine, can I help you then?" he gritted out. America pouted and hid her head in her arms again.

"No! I don't want to be here!"

"Che, why? Because your country is so much better?" Romano said sarcastically.

With a bang America bolted to her feet, throwing the chair back in the process and slammed her hands on the table. "NO! I just happen to hate going to a meeting were everyone tells me I'm worthless!"

Worthless? America? "What in the world are you talking about?! You're always talking about how you're the hero!" Romano shot back.

America placed a hand on her hip and used the other to gesticulate wildly as she ranted. "Well, let's see. According to England I'm _fat,_ France is always telling me I'm _stupid,_ Russia loves to call me a _capitalist pig_ when he gets the chance and China is always talking about how _incompetent_ I am! So what am I supposed to think huh?! I'm obviously not good enough for them! I'm NEVER going to be good enough for them, I'M _WORTHLESS_!" More tears bubbled up in her baby blue eyes and she turned away abruptly.

Now Romano was completely floored. What was he supposed to do now?! Comfort her? How could he possibly do that? He opened and closed his mouth several times as he tried to thing of what to say. "W-well," he began, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "At least you get noticed!"

America looked at him sharply, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Now it was Romano's turn to rant. "I never get noticed or recognized! I'm half of Italy but most of the time other nations act as if I don't exist! They prefer my sister! She's pretty and sweet and a total pushover, so of course they like her better than someone like...me." He pointed to America. "And look at YOU. You're one of the most noticeable nations ever! I mean, you started out so small, but now you're one of the most powerful nations that ever existed. Do you know how jealous some nations are of you? How jealous _I _am of you?!" He snapped his mouth shut abruptly. Did he really just say that?! He could feel his cheeks heating up like they always did when he was upset or flustered.

"You really feel that way?" America whispered. Romano nodded jerkily. What could he say? She was like a candle on a dark and perilous ocean. A beacon that everyone could see for leagues on end. As for himself, heh, he was stranded at the bottom of that ocean. Forgotten, unwanted, unnoticed. America studied him for a while, a few stray tears lying forgotten on her cheeks and chin. She leaned in closer and let out a small giggle. "Wow, you really do look like a tomato!"

"Wha-MMPH!" Romano's protests were cut off by America placing her lips squarely on his own, effectively muffling his words. It took Romano five seconds into the kiss for him realize that she _was _kissing him... and he was kissing her back. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer. America sighed and ruffled his hair, brushing his lone curl by accident. His face almost purple, Romano quickly broke off the kiss before anything... unprecedented happened. America looked just as shock by her own actions. Her face was scarlet and Romano noticed how kissable her lips were and- _now is __not the time you idiot!_

America looked down at her cowboy boots for a while before glancing up at him shyly. "Thanks... for cheering me up I mean. I needed that," she confessed.

"S-sure!" Romano gasped. "And... and anyone who bothers you has to deal with me!" A delighted smile burst across America's features and Romano felt his heart jump erratically in his chest. She pulled Romano into a hug which Romano awkwardly returned. _She isn't so bad I guess... _he thought.

Not that he would ever admit it out loud of course.

* * *

**It's getting easier to write Romerica. As a die hard Spamano fan, this is slightly disturbing. O_O Anywho, I'm really glad that I have time to write again, so far the beginning of my summer has been fairly busy. Also, this it the twentieth chapter! :D I feel like I should celebrate or something! *throws confetti into the air* XD**

**Please Review!  
**


	21. Hakuna Matata

**This one is for insane-assylum-13 who requested some Germany/Mexico**

**Song: Hakuna Matata**

* * *

Ludwig looked down at the small German farm his cloud was raining on and nodded in satisfaction. It always gave him pleasure to know that his duties were appreciated and needed sometimes. As a rain spirit, he wasn't exactly the most popular type of weather out there. There was even a nursery rhyme about it, _"Rain, rain, go away. Come again some other day." _He guided his cloud past the farm and planned on settling there for a time but a crackle in the air let him know that trouble, more commonly known as his brother, was coming. A loud rumble came from the east and a flash of lightning streaked across the sky to land on his cloud. a rush of electricity raced up and down Ludwig's legs before settling. He blinked rapidly until he could see clearly and glared at the man lounging on the other end of his cloud. Gilbert was shocking to look at which fit his role as a lightning spirit perfectly. His wild white hair was always tousled and his crimson eyes flashed with a mischievous light while his jagged, crimson tunic constantly crackled with energy. He was almost the exact opposite of Ludwig whose blonde hair and gray tunic were always neat and orderly and his blue eyes were the definition of solemnity.

Gilbert cackled at Ludwig's expression, "Ksesese, vhy so serious bruder?"

"Because vhenever you come around you bring trouble in your vake," Ludwig answered.

Gilbert pouted and pressed a hand to his chest in mock hurt. "Oh come on! Zhere vas zhat time vhen-"

"I had to save you before Lovino turned you into ash?"

"No, I vas talking about zhat ozher time-"

"Elizaveta almost crushed us because of zhat prank you pulled?"

"I meant zhat ozher, _ozher _time vhen I-"

"Made Vash so made he threw you across Europe and Asia?"

Gilbert sighed and flopped onto his back. "You're no fun, you know zhat? Vhy don't you loosen up once in a vhile?"

Ludwig rolled his eyes but didn't respond. He took his job seriously and he did it well, that was probably why he'd become a full-fledged rain spirit so quickly. He was young by spirit standards, only a hundred years or so. Still, it was sometimes hard to remember that Gilbert was the _older _brother. "Vhat do you vant?" he asked, coming right to the point.

Gilbert shook his head, "It's not vhat I vant, it's vhat Mutter Nature vants. Und she vants you to go to zhe Gulf of Mexico."

Ludwig stared at him in shock for a few seconds then flew to the clipboard resting next to him and flipped through the pages frantically. "I don't remember seeing zhat in my schedule!"

Gilbert laughed again, "Zhat's because it isn't in your schedule. Mutter decided it just now and she vants you to get zhere fast." He wilted slightly under Ludwig's suspicious glare. "Vhat?!"

"If you're trying to trick me, I'll-"

Gilbert quickly shook his head, "Zhat's not it at all! Ja, I've pulled pranks on you before, but even I'm not stupid enough to involve Mutter!"

With a groan Ludwig sat down. "Vhy? Zhis vill mess up my entire veek, no, my entire month. I'll have to get Roderich to fill in for me und-"

Gilbert snorted and sat up, "Seriously bruder! Calm down and just go vith zhe flow! I don't know vhy Mutter vants this, but I trust her. Don't you trust her?"

"...Ja."

"Ksesese! Good! Now get going!" With another mad cackle and a snap of his fingers Gilbert was racing across the sky and out of sight. Ludwig pulled out a map from the very bottom of his stack of papers and found the Gulf of Mexico. He'd never been there before, he'd heard it was warm but that was about it. Ugh, he was getting a headache. The sooner he got done with whatever Mother Earth wanted him to do the better.

* * *

It was the unexpected cold that woke Ludwig up. Mumbling angrily he sat up and looked around at the earth beneath his cloud and was surprised to see grey rocks instead of a lush rainforest floor. His trip to the Gulf of Mexico had been long and frustrating but upon reaching it he'd been pleasantly surprised by the wonderfully climate and amazing landscape. He'd drifted in from the Atlantic Ocean near the port of Veracruz and fallen asleep, letting the wind and mother nature carry him where they may.

But now it was so cold! He looked to his left and yelped in surprise, he was about to run into a gigantic mountain! He estimated it was around 5,500 meters above sea level and it housed what seemed to be several glaciers at the very top. He felt a tingling sensation go through his spine, the kind he only got when he was about to meet a new spirit. Was this the reason Mother Nature had sent him here? He nudged his cloud up the slope of the mountain and watched the horizons around him get bigger as he got higher and higher. After a few minutes the cloud reached the very top and Ludwig gingerly stepped off it onto the snow-capped peak. The wind bit at his exposed arms and face making him shiver violently. He crouched low, placed a hand on the snow, and tried to communicate with Mother Nature. Something was blocking him though, something deep inside the mountain. The tingling sensation returned and Ludwig fell to his hands and knees as all sense of vertigo left him.

About two feet from him several sheets of ice detached themselves from the mountain and swirled in the air faster and faster. More ice joined them and Ludwig scrambled back from the ever increasing mini tornado that was boring through the layers of snow, ice, and rock. Bits of debris flew everywhere and Ludwig was forced to cover his face to prevent something hitting his eye or worse. He considered somehow reaching his cloud and flying away but just as quickly as the wind had started it suddenly stopped and he could open his eyes again. The landscape was the same as before except that now there was a hole in the mountain. It looked to be around five feet in diameter but it was impossible to tell how deep it was. A loud noise, almost like a yawn, came up from the hole and a moment later a hand followed. Ludwig watched with apprehension as the dark hand was followed by an equally dark skinned arm. Then another arm appeared followed by a head. It was a woman, her long black hair fell like a curtain in front of her face and hid her features as she slowly climbed out of the hole.

Ludwig looked her up and down; she was wearing a plain white dress that went down to her knees. Unlike her arms, her legs were made of stone and were webbed with cracks. This openings were filled with lava that oozed onto the ice with a hiss. The woman swiped her hair away from her eyes and now Ludwig could see her dark brown eyes and proud features. She yawned again and stretched, her fingers reaching for the sky, the she rubbed at one of her eyes and Ludwig was suddenly reminded of a child that had woken from a long nap. The woman finally seemed to notice Ludwig, with a sleepy smile she said, "Nano toka."

He didn't understand, but Ludwig guessed that she was greeting him. "Uh...hallo."

The woman blinked and tilted her head to the side, "You speak... English?" Ludwig nodded, glad to have found a common language. She smiled again, "Who are you? And what year is it?"

Ludwig stood up slowly, "I am Ludvig, und it is 2013."

"Oh! I slept all the way to the 21st century?!" The woman looked around at her mountain and laughed. "Well, I certainly wasn't expecting this..."

Ludwig scratched the back of his head, "Neizher vas I. Er... who are you?"

The woman shrugged, "I don't know what my people call me these days, wait a moment." She closed her eyes and the mountain seemed to hum under her feet. With a whispery sigh she opened her eyes again, "Most people call me Pico de Orizaba. But I have many other names. I have been called Citlaltepetl, Istaktepetl and Poyautecatl. You can choose whichever you like."

With a puzzled frown, the rain spirit replied, "...but...vhat do _you _vant to be called?"

The woman looked thunderstruck. She waved a hand and a shelf of stone burst out of the ground to form a bench-like seat. Plopping down onto it, she mused aloud. "What do _I _want? No one's ever asked me that before... my people usually name me whatever fits best. Um..." she looked at Ludwig shyly, "Would you call me Citlal?" Ludwig nodded gravely and held out his hand. Citlal took it but after the first second they jerked their hands away in pain. Ludwig held back a hiss of pain as he looked down at the blisters forming on his palm, her hand was scorching hot! "Your hand is so cold," Citlal muttered. She glanced behind him at his cloud and recognition dawned on her face, "Ohhhh... you're a rain spirit!"

"Ja. And mountain spirits aren't supposed to be so...hot."

Citlal raised an eyebrow and lifted up one of her feet. Lava was still seeping from it and she pointed to it. "I'm not a mountain spirit, I'm a volcano spirit."

That made absolutely no sense to Ludwig. Volcano spirits were supposed to be quick tempered beings, constantly flying into a rage and passionate about everything. Citlal sensed his confusion and explained, "I've been dormant for a long time, my last eruption was sometime in the 19th century. I've been sleeping ever since. I wonder why Madre wanted me to wake up? I don't think I'm going to erupt anytime soon. Maybe I'll never erupt again." She said this last part so cheerfully it took Ludwig completely by surprise and he could help but yell,

"But, you'll go extinct! Und if you go extinct zhen you'll die und some new mountain spirit vill take your place!"

Citlal laughed and waved his concern away. "I've been around since the Pleistocene, I've lived a good life. And maybe I will erupt again, it doesn't matter to me. Now sit down before you collapse." She patted the rock next to her and Ludwig sat down. Even though they maintained a safe distance he could still feel heat radiating off her.

"Still," he continued, "Maybe if you try to erupt or, I don't know, do _somezhing-_"

"Hakuna Matata."

"...Vhat?"

"Hakuna Matata. I heard it from an old African wind spirit once. It means 'no worries'." Citlal looked off to the east and her eyes got a faraway, nostalgic look. Then she snapped back to the present and looked at Ludwig. "What about you? When were you born?"

"A century ago."

Citlal whistled, "That's impressive. You're so young! I'd forgotten that rain spirits have a shorter lifespan... still, the fact that you're already on your own is amazing!"

"Vell, I take my job very seriously," Ludwig answered somewhat stiffly. He wasn't really sure about how he regarded this volcanic spirit. She was very old and probably very wise but her nonchalant way of living - even if she was almost at the end of her days - reminded him of his brother and he certainly didn't like that.

With a huff Citlal smacked him on the arm causing them both to wince. "Well, it sounds like you take it too seriously. Shouldn't young rain spirits like you be flying around causing floods or droughts-"

Ludwig cut her off indignantly, "I vould never do somezhing so foolish!"

With another laugh Citlal stood up, "You REALLY need to learn the concept of Hakuna Matata my friend." An unexpected yawn burst from her throat and she looked mildly taken aback. "Oh, I think I'll be going to sleep again soon." She pivoted and looked at Ludwig with large pleading eyes. "Stay with me until I fall asleep?"

Ludwig rubbed his arm and thought about it. He really should get back to his schedule but... perhaps it would be okay to relax just this once. He nodded and stood up. "Alright. Are you sure I von't be a bother?"

Citlal winked at him, "No worries."

* * *

**So... I think I really like this little universe! I may come back to it some day.  
**

**Just so you all know, Pico de Orizaba is a real volcano. It's the biggest mountain in Mexico and the third highest in North America. It's currently dormant, but not extinct so it may erupt some day. Also, it has nine glaciers, the biggest being Gran Glaciar Norte. Random Fun Fact: The name Citlaltepetl means "Star Mountain" in Nahuatl so Citlal means "Star".**

**Also, does anyone find the concept that a rain spirit can choose his own name while a volcano spirit can't weird? I think it makes sense but I want to hear your opinion.**

**Please Review!**


	22. She's So Gone

**Wow, when was the last time I posted something for this? I'm not dead guys! I promise! Q_Q I'm sorry you guys have to put up with such a lazy person. This one shot is for Starfire67**

**Song: She's So Gone**

* * *

Jealousy.

It's something everyone experiences in their lifetime, especially if they have the lifespan of a nation. In fact, nations are much more likely to experience jealousy, anger, disappointment and hatred than most humans. So it is not an uncommon thing for a nation to be jealous. They may be jealous that something good has happened to a long time enemy, that another nation has something they don't have... like their ex girlfriends.

Spain stared at _them _moodily from his perch high up in a tree. Hidden by the foliage he had an excellent view of everything going on in the park that the tree resided, but Spain's eyes were fixed on two people and two people only. His grip on a nearby branch tightened painfully when he saw his Lovina kiss that...that scoundrel! He refused to believe that his Lovina actually loved that man, her heart would eventually return to where it belonged. Him.

"Hey, _Spanien_, not zhat I'm complaining or anything, but vhy are we watching Lovina's date?" Prussia whispered from a few branches down. France had refused to take part in what he called, "a disgrace to _l'amour_". What did France know about love anyway? He'd never had a serious relationship in his life!...well, there was that time with Joan... Spain shook his head and glared at his friend,

"I want to make sure that _he _doesn't do anything to my Lovi!" he snapped.

Prussia looked at him with concern written all over his face. "_Spanien_," he began. "I'm not one to lecture people - I mean seriously, me? - but... I don't zhink zhis is healzhy. I understand you're angry zhat Lovina dumped you-" Spain let out a little growl. "-but following her all zhe time, und I mean ALL ZHE TIME, just isn't...I mean, it's obsessive! Und zhat's unawesome."

Spain let himself drop until he was on the same branch as Prussia. The ex nation sensed his friend's ire and leaned away from him but Spain was having none of that. He grabbed Prussia's shoulder and squeezed it painfully tight. "Is that so, amigo? Perhaps the pot should look at itself before it makes fun of the kettle. You say you're awesome all the time, and I mean ALL THE TIME. Isn't that a little 'obsessive'? And for another thing, Lovina is _mine_. She was angry with me when we broke up and I will admit that I was in the wrong but I know she still loves me. That man cannot give her what she needs and sooner or later she'll realize that. She _will _come back to me, Prussia."

Prussia looked at him in disgust. "Zhere's somezhing wrong vith you, seriously." He brushed off the Spaniards hand and started climbing down the tree. "Come back und talk to me once you've got your head screwed on right." He paused and looked up at Spain one last time, "You need to accept the facts Toni, she's gone." With that said he jumped the last remaining feet and landed on the ground. Spain watched him walk away in silence. So what? He didn't need Prussia! There was only one person he needed in this world. He resumed his position and watched as Lovina walked by holding hands with _him_. Spain barely contained a scream of frustration as she laughed as some lame joke _he'd _made.

"I swear, Lovi," Spain whispered. "I'll always wait for you."

* * *

**And who gets the award for making one of her favorite characters a stalker? I do! Urgh, I dunno how this even came to me. Spain's not a psycho, I promise! Also, I made Lovina's new boyfriend anonymous for a reason. It just felt right I guess...I don't even know anymore, seriously guys. And it's so short! DX I'm sooorrrrryyyy! I'll try to do better!  
**

**Please review!**


	23. I Don't Dance

**Hey, since the previous chapter was so...depressing I made sure this one was a lot happier. Seriously, I hate writing angsty stuff. What on earth possessed me to write that last chapter? This is for a guest (I assume they're a guest unless their name is really Hey Hey) who wanted PruAme. I've never written it but I gave it a go.**

**Song: I Don't Dance**

* * *

Alfred scowled when a wadded up piece of paper hit the back of his head for the third time. He'd gone to the library to cram in some much needed study for a Chemistry test but how was he supposed to concentrate when _someone _was constantly harassing him. He didn't even need to turn around to know who it was either. Julchen Beilschmidt, one of the most popular girls at Hetalia High School and a grade above Alfred who was a Sophomore. For weeks now it seemed like she'd been seeking Alfred out just to bug him. Before school started, lunch, between classes and basically any other times she could find him. Don't get the wrong idea, she wasn't bullying him, but she was _so annoying_! Like, even more annoying than he could be! That took a lot of skill.

His patience finally broke when he heard her crumple up another piece of paper. Alfred turned around angrily and was just able to catch the paper before it hit him. Julchen grinned at him from her table and winked. She was odd looking to say the least. Being albino, her long, wild hair was a snowy white and her eyes a deep crimson that contrasted sharply with her pale skin. She sported a faint scar on her left cheek and whenever someone asked how she'd gotten it her story changed every time, each of them more wild and outlandish than before. Despite all of this though was very pretty and could have had any guy she wanted from the Junior or the Senior class (except for his brother, Arthur, but that was because Arthur was dating Francois). So why was she devoting her time to pestering a Sophomore?

"What do you want, Beilschmidt?" Alfred hissed.

Julchen smirked and stood up before slowly walking over to Alfred's table. She placed a hand on the table, effectively trapping Alfred against the wall the table pushed up against. Alfred gulped and tried to conceal his uneasiness. Julchen's smirk grew and she cackled, "Someone voke up on the zhe wrong side of zhe bed!"

Oh yeah, she was also a German transfer student and Alfred just so happened to find German accents very sexy- _what?! NO! _Alfred forced his thoughts away from her incredible accent and focused on glaring at her. "Can you just go? I've got enough to worry about without you making it worse."

Julchen ignored him and looked at the notes spread out on the table. "Ooh, chemistry? Ich liebe chemistry! Who's you teacher?"

"Mr. Braginski."

With a shudder Julchen leaned back a bit, "Wow, zhat's so unawesome. Sucks to be you."

Alfred nodded, "Tell me about it." He glanced at her, "So, is there a reason you're here or are you just entertaining yourself?"

A sudden change came over the German girl. Her cocky arrogance seemed to leave her and it left behind a girl who tugged at her long hair and avoided his eyes. She grabbed a chair from a nearby table and dragged it over so she could sit down. One hand running over her thigh over and over, she asked, "So... um, are you going to prom?"

This took Alfred completely off guard. Why would she ask him that? True is was only a month away but... "Uh... not unless I'm invited. Freshmen and Sophomores can't go you know," he answered. Julchen brightened and she opened her mouth-

_**BUZZZZZZZZZZ!**_

Alfred looked at the clock and groaned. That had been the warning bell, he had six minutes to get to his first class... which was chemistry. Julchen watched him grab his notes and stuff them in his backpack before venturing to ask, "But vould you go if you could?"

"Go where?" he pushed past her and headed for the library doors. Julchen hissed in annoyance and followed him,

"Go to _prom, _you dummkopf!"

He didn't have a clue what she'd just called him so Alfred went to the standard fallback, "Ditto."

"Klugscheißer. Answer zhe question!" By now they were in the hall and a wave of students was descending on them and the noise level was increasing. This, along with Julchen's condescending tone, was the straw that broke the camel's back. Alfred whirled around to face her. Even though she was his senior by a year he towered over her.

"No! I wouldn't want to go to the prom even if someone asked me!"

Julchen flinched at his harsh tone but quickly recovered. "Vhy? You afraid?" Alfred turned his back on her and walked away, maybe he could lose her in the crowd. No such luck. She grabbed his arm, just above his wrist, and clung to it. He tried to ignored both her taunts and the electric thrill that went up and down his arm at her touch. "You _are _afraid! Ksesese! Do you still zhink girls have cooties or somezhing?"

"It's just a stupid dance! Why would I want to waste my time for something like that. Besides, I don't dance."

"I'm sure you can!"

"Not a chance."

Julchen pouted and finally let go. "Alright spielverderber. Have it your vay. But I _know _you'll dance sometime soon~!" She flounced off down a side hallway and left Alfred all alone in the sea of students. He watched her leave for a minute then shook his head in confusion.

The last warning bell ran and he jumped in alarm, "Crap!" He sprinted up a flight of stairs and swerved into his class just as the bell rang.

Mr. Braginski looked up from his desk, "That was close, Alfred. I hope you don't make it a habit. That would be bad, da?" Alfred shivered and nodded curtly. He practically fell into his chair and wearily let his backpack fall to the floor. A groan escaped his lips when he saw Mr. Braginski passing out the test papers. _Stupid, sexy German... what's her deal? First she pesters me for weeks and then she keeps asking me weird stuff about the prom. _

As usual, Alfred was completely clueless.

* * *

**This... was a lot of fun to write! XD Poor Alfred, aside from Feliciano I don't think anyone is less observant than you!  
**

**Also, I don't trust Google Translate (I think it's friends with the cake, it lies) so if any German speaker sees anything funny about the stuff Julchen says please tell me and tell me how to fix it!**

**klugscheißer - smart ass  
****spielverderber - spoilsport**

**Please review!**


	24. I'll Make A Man Out Of You

**I swear I'm getting lazier and lazier. Maybe it's because school starts in a couple weeks. QAQ This chapter's for Ayumi Kudou!**

**Song: I'll Make A Man Out Of You **

* * *

Lilli Zwingli peeked out at the military encampment farther down the mountain and let out a shaky sigh. It couldn't be that hard to pass herself off as a boy could it? She just needed some practice! She already looked like a younger version of her brother with her short hair and she'd left her ribbons behind when she'd run away, she just needed some practice. A nudge on her shoulder made her scream and turn around but it was only her horse. Lilli laughed and patted his nose, "You scared me Roderich. I'll need to work on that, boys don't yell like little girls." How _did _boys act? She thought on it for a while and tried puffing out her chest and speaking in a deeper cadence. She she practiced walking up to the recruitment officer, "Excuse me? Where do I sign in? I see you have a gun, I have one too! They're very manly and tough- WAHH!" she shrieked again as she tried to pull her rifle over her head but ended up falling.

Roderich neighed loudly, almost as if he was laughing. Lilli pouted, "I'm working on it!"

"Ksesese! You'll need more zhan practice to succeed girly!" a strange, hissing voice called from up above her. She looked up and saw a pure white lizard laying on top of a tree branch. Puffs of smoke were coning out of it's nostrils and it's glowing red eyes frightened her,

"A ghost lizard!" she squeaked, running behind Roderich who didn't look at all impressed.

The lizard protested loudly, "Oi, I'm a dragon, a _lindwurm_! No lizard, I don't do zhat veird tongue zhing."

_As if that was any better, _Lilli thought. "Um... who are you?"

The liz- dragon jumped and landed gracefully on the ground, "Who am I? Who am _I_? I am zhe powerful, zhe pleasurable, zhe awesome Gilbert! I have been sent by your ancestor, Wilhelm, to aid you in your deception and keep you alive!" He paused and pointed a finger at Lilli, "You _do _know zhat the penatly for disguising as a man in the army is death right?" Lilli nodded.

"I don't understand though, why would my ancestor send something so... tiny?" Lilli confessed.

Gilbert waved off her concern and jumped onto Roderich's saddle much to his annoyance. "Ksesese! Of course, zhe awesome me is travel size for your convenience (I'm not small by zhe vay, I'm fun sized). If I vas my real size your cow here vould die of fright." Roderich snapped at him but Gilbert scurried farther out of his reach. He continued bragging, "My awesome powers are far beyond your mortal imagination. For instance, my eyes can see straight through your clothes," he added, looking at Lilli's chest area. With an indignant huff Lilli smacked him off of the horse and back onto the ground.

The dragon sat up and rubbed his cheek. "OW! Oh zhat's it! Dishonor! Dishonor on your whoooole family! Dishonor on you, dishonor on your cow!-" Lilli knelt down behind him and placed a hand over his mouth,

"Stop! I'm sorry!" She looked down at her lap. "I'm just nervous, I've never done anything like this before." Gilbert's eyes softened and he grabbed one of her hands in both of his,

"Zhen you're going to have to trust me, and no more slapping!" Lilli smiled a bit but there was still fear in her eyes. Gilbert saw this and looked around wildly until he spotted a cricket with a curly antenna sitting on a leaf nearby. He snatched it and held it up for Lilli's inspection. "Don't vorry, I brought a lucky cricket vith me, see?" Lilli cupped her hands around the terrified cricket and her smile grew.

"What's its name?"

"Uh...uh...Matthew!"

Lilli giggled, "What a cute name!" She handed the bug back to Gilbert and stood up. "We should get going," she said, walking back to her horse. Roderich snorted angrily as Gilbert once again hopped on his back but didn't dare do anything while Lilli was there too. As they traveled down the mountain a question popped into Gilbert's mind,

"Hey, don't you have a bruder? Vhy isn't he fighting?"

The girl flushed and looked down at the reins. "Big brother has always been neutral when it comes to war. I'd hate for him to have to give that up so... I came instead."

"You're brave," Gilbert whistled. "Zhat's awesome. I'll get you through this, you'll see!"

* * *

"Who's the runt?"

Lilli flinched as a loud, obnoxious voice rang over the crowd of men. There could be no doubting who he was talking about, she was shorter than all of them by at least a head! She could feel Gilbert, who'd hidden in the back of her shirt, wriggle irately. A slow turn revealed the rude soldier; he was a tall, broad shouldered young man with dirty blonde hair and bright blue eyes half-hidden by glasses, mischief and a handsome face. What drew her attention was not his good looks however, it was his cowlick that seemed to defy gravity. The man-child sauntered over to Lilli and looked up and down what little there was of her. "The military must be scraping at the bottom of the barrel if you're here," he commented in an irritating American accent. Lilli blushed and tried to stand up straighter.

"Should I bite him? I could bite him," Gilbert offered from his hiding place. Lilli gave an almost imperceptible shake of her head.

A smaller man with wild blonde hair and angry green eyes stomped up and smacked the American upside the head, "Leave him alone you git, you have the manners of a barracuda!" With a jolt Lilli realized that the man was talking about "him". _I'll have to get used to being called a boy_...

The American whined piteously, "That was mean Arthur!"

"So was your behavior!"

"What?! I'm just tellin' the truth here!"

Arthur rolled his eyes and started pushing him away, "Go on with you. Make yourself useful for once _somewhere else_." Grumbling, the taller man complied and Arthur turned back to Lilli. "I apologize for that. Alfred doesn't mean anything by it, truly."

Lilli nodded weakly and whispered, "Thank you."

She just remembered to make her voice lower in time so Arthur remained oblivious for the moment. With a smile he held out his hand and whispered, "I'm Arthur Kirkland by the way."

Lilli returned the favor, "I'm Li-" She broke off and pretended to cough. Arthur raised an eyebrow,

"Liam?"

"Lindsey!" Gilbert hissed into Lilli's ear. "Vait, zhat's to girly. Linnaeus, Lionel, oh vait! I had a friend named Lieven!"

"Lieven!" Lilli half shouted. "Lieven Zwingli. Or...Li for short..." her voice trailed back into a whisper.

A loud clanging coming from the mess tent followed by loud cursing mercifully distracted Arthur from the trembling "boy". "Oh for the love of- If Alfred's not behind it then I'm a teacup," He dashed off to the tent and all too soon Lilli was standing completely alone in the see of tents... wait, where were the rest of the soldiers?!

Her guardian dragon wrapped his tail around her neck and cranked it so she was looking to her left. All the men were lining up in rows, some of them even gestured for her to join them. What on earth was going on?!

"Soldier!" A loud commanding voice right behind her made her spin around and she found herself looking eye to eye with possibly the scariest man she'd ever seen. He wasn't physically unappealing; he was Asian, around middle height (not as tall as Alfred but a bit taller than Arthur) with long black hair drawn back in a ponytail and lovely brown eyes. It was the eyes that threw here off though, they were glaring at her so fiercely she was afraid she'd be turned to stone. He leaned in until they were almost nose to nose. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I-I-" Lilli cursed her dry mouth and tried to speak comprehensibly.

The man, or officer as was probably the case, cut her off and barked, "Who are you?"

"Lieven Zwingli..."

The officer blinked in surprise and leaned back a bit, "You aren't by any chance related to _the _Vash Zwingli, are you?"

How would a military man know about big brother? Vash had never been anywhere near the army...right? But this man seemed to know and respect him, maybe this could be used in her favor. She couldn't be directly tied with Vash though or her secret might come out a lot sooner than she wanted it to. "Yes, he's my aunt's cousin's nephew...twice removed."

The glare was back, but a bit softer than before, "I see." He pointed to the rest of the men, "Get in line."

Lilli was all too happy to comply. She scurried to the back of the group and stood next to a giant of a man with soft looking ashy blonde hair and purple eyes. "Privet comrade," he greeted in a thick Russian accent. Lilli smiled at his friendly manner but snapped back to attention when the officer began shouting.

"I am Yao Wang, but you will address me as Captain Wang or simply Captain. Is that understood?"

"Sir, yes Sir!" Everyone shouted.

Captain Wang stalked up and down the first row, "I suppose you all think you're brave coming here to fight in this war? How amusing. When I'm through with you, you'll know the real meaning of bravery, along with pain and suffering! I'll turn you boys into real men!" Lilli gulped audibly and clutched her gun tighter. The Captain looked up at the darkening sky, "I suggest you sleep, your training begins at dawn. Dismissed." With that said he stalked off and entered his tent. All the men let out a sigh and quietly separated. Lilli was shaking all over, what in the world had she gotten herself into?!

Gilbert was less impressed, "Tch, who spit in his rice? Am I right, Mattie?" He looked at the cricket in his hand but the insect made no reply. Patting the back of her neck he advised, "Come on girl, let's find a tent." Lilli hesitantly looked around but she couldn't get the captain out of her head. Despite his harsh nature she already admired him and that scared her even more than his threats. Still, if he managed to turn a girl into a "real man" he would doubtlessly be the greatest captain in the world. Lilli looked down at her self, at her thin limbs and petite frame.

Captain Wang would need all the help he could get.

* * *

**This was actually challenging! I had to discover a whole different side of China, no "aru"s or pandas for Captain Wang! I'm thinking of making an omake of this and basing it off that hilarious bath scene in Mulan. You're thoughts?**

**Please review!**


	25. I See The Light

**So... school is starting in a couple of weeks. I actually can't wait because that gives me an excuse to not get these chapters done as fast. /shot/ Ahem, Flyingmintbunny9 requested some France/Fem!UK.**

**Song: I See The Light**

* * *

~*Alice's POV*~

If you walk into our living room and look at the mantle above the fireplace you will see three photographs of three different weddings. The one on the far right depicts Francis and his wife, Jeanne. They both look splendid, dressed in white and surrounded by roses. Francis, being the ridiculous, romantic Frenchman that he is, dipped Jeanne down and kissed her just as the picture was taken. You can see them both smiling into the kiss. He's often told me that he was glad he hadn't know what would happen only five months later after their wedding. You see, Francis was away on a business trip one night and as far as the authorities can figure there was some sort of gas leak. It's a comfort to know Jeanne died peacefully in her sleep I guess. All of this happened two years before the wedding picture on the far left took place.

That's my wedding picture. Well, mine and Alfred's. He looks very handsome in his tuxedo and his bright blue eyes flashing. And I look all right too I suppose. The adorable git picked me up bridal style and kissed me on the cheek. I was quite put out by that - don't let my smile in the photo fool you - but Alfred just laughed. That was his cure for anything, a good laugh. I wish more people could be like him, honest, direct, and positive. Though, they could spare his way of finding trouble and his love of superheroes. People might say I was luckier than Francis since I got three years with Alfred before... The men in his unit say he was a fine soldier, a veritable hero. Stupid, selfless git.

* * *

_Alice looked at the white roses in her hand. She hated the color. White was cold and empty. There wasn't any promise of something better in the color, at least, that was how she saw it. Why had she picked these roses? Right, because she hadn't been paying attention. A robin twittered overhead and Alice looked up. The graveyard was beautiful, she'd give it that. Shady and cool, it gave the headstones a soft, muted look. She hadn't been here since the funeral almost two months ago. She didn't have the heart to visit any sooner. Alice shook her head to clear it, she wouldn't get anywhere be standing around like a ninny.  
_

_She took a moment to strengthen her resolve before continuing on. Alfred's grave wasn't far, only a couple rows down. She tsked in annoyance when she spotted someone blocking her way. It looked to be a man not much older than herself with wavy shoulder length blonde hair that was tied back. He was standing in front of a grave and holding roses as well except that his were a light pink. Alice watched silently as he knelt down and laid them on the grave, head bowed. He whispered something too faint to hear and rose to his feet. He didn't notice Alice until she was right next to him.  
_

_"Am I blocking your way?" he asked in a lilting French accent. _

_His eyes were blue too.  
_

_Swallowing back a lump in her throat she answered, "I-I'm sorry, I don't mean to be a bother." She glanced at the gravestone and saw the name "Jeanne Bonnefoy" and another glance revealed that she'd been dead for around five years. "Was she a friend of yours?"_

_He gave a small smile. "She was my wife."_

_"Oh." Alice looked back down at her roses. The purity of their color was mocking her. "Oh!" A sob escaped her lips and tears beaded in her eyes. A hand fell on her should and a handkerchief was offered._

_"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to offend!" _

_Alice shook her head quickly and wiped her eyes, "No, no. It's not you. I'm... going to my husbands grave." A silence fell upon them. A long, knowing silence. He was the first to break it by holding out his arm and asking,_

_"May I accompany you?" _

_'No' was on the tip of her tongue yet Alice couldn't get it out. But after all, she'd refused Matthew's offer to go with her and he was Alfred's brother! Why would she want the company of a stranger? _Because this stranger knows what you're going through_, a voice whispered in her head. After another pause she hesitantly took his arm, "That would be lovely." _

* * *

~*Francis' POV*~

I see her standing in front of the fireplace when I walk in. The afternoon sunlight streaming through the windows turns her hair into a shining curtain of gold. She looks angelic, it's not hard to imagine her with wings and a halo. I'm glad she's not an angel though; I'd much prefer having her here with moi. She doesn't notice me until I wrap my arms around her and rest my chin on her shoulder. All she does is lean against me and continue looking at the middle picture. It's _our _wedding picture, Alice and I. We're standing on the church steps holding hands and smiling. Both of us are a bit older and a bit wiser than our previous pictures but still just as happy.

I snuggle against her neck and sigh. I try not to imagine those years after I lost Jeanne and before I met Alice. It was a nightmare straight from Hell. I felt like I had no purpose, no reason to live any longer. I probably would have committed suicide long ago but my friends never let me out of their sight those first few months and they were too smart to be fooled by any tricks. Well, Gilbert anyway, I'm not sure about Antonio. The day I found Alice was the day I found a new purpose. At first, all I wanted to do was help her through her grief and she seemed to appreciate it (so far as I could tell anyway, she's always been a bit secretive with her true feelings). But over time it grew into something...more.

I can feel the cold metal of the chain Alice always wears against my lips. On that chain hangs the wedding ring Alfred gave her. In my pocket is the ring I wore when Jeanne was alive. I remember the day I realized I loved her. We weren't doing anything special, I was just walking her home is all. I had just managed to make her laugh - a Herculean feat - and as she was brushing some stray hair from her face it hit me. I was in love with her, deeply and truly. I was very conflicted and guilty for weeks. How could I love her when Jeanne was still so near my heart? It took a while to figure it out but I came to understand that my love for Alice didn't overshadow or try to replace my love for Jeanne in any way. And Jeanne, I knew, wouldn't want me to stay alone. From what I'd heard about him, I knew Alfred would have felt the same way. So three years after we met I proposed to Alice. To my joy she said yes.

The feeling that rushed through me was incredible. It was like I'd been stumbling through a fog for years and now, finally, it had lifted and I could find my way again. Alice and I were able to build a life together. We supported each other, confided in each other and found happiness in each other. I tell my sweet Alice every day how much I need her.

She is the sun in my sky, my light, my life.

* * *

**You would not believe how long I've had this idea rattling around in my brain. So when I got a request with this pairing and with this song... I was very happy to say the least. X3**

**Also, I have an important announcement. I have decided that once I reach 50 chapters I will end Disneytalia. This wasn't an easy decision since you've all been so kind and enthusiastic but I think it's for the best. I have other stories I want to get to and while this is fun it won't last forever. **

**This brings me to another point, I've received several comments asking me to continue a one shot or make it into a story. I'm probably going to turn the One Jump Ahead plot into a story (I've got it all figured out in my head) but as for the others... well, there's no way I'll ever be able to get to all of them and it seems a shame to waste them. What I'm trying to say is, would anyone like to adopt some of these stories? If so, send me a PM and we'll talk. Be warned though, I will be checking out your profile and other stories. I'm sorry if that seems mean or paranoid but these are my babies, I can't just give them away. **

**Thank you for your amazing support and I hope you enjoy the next 25 chapters!  
**


	26. I'll Make A Man Out Of You Omake!

**Since you all seemed to like the idea, here's the second part I suggested!**

* * *

Gilbert looked up at the moon high above him then glowered at the jungle of reeds surrounding a nearby pond. Roderich stood nearby eating placidly and ignoring the dragon's uneasiness. Gilbert continued pacing up and down the bank edge while complaining, "Zhis isn't a good idea Lilli, vhat if somebody sees you?"

Lilli, who was undressing and hanging her clothes on a nearby tree, replied calmly, "Just because I look like a man doesn't mean I have to smell like one, right?"

"So a couple of guys don't rinse out zheir socks! Picky, picky, picky," Gilbert mocked. He shrank a bit as Lilli glared at him, "V-vhat?"

The girl sighed, "This is the only time I'm going to get a good bath, Gilbert! I can't bathe in front of the others and it's late enough that no one would come here to swim." With that said she jumped into the pond, resurfacing a second later and sighing as the dirt and grime was rinsed away.

Gilbert tsked as she started washing her hair, "Alright, get on out of zhere before you get all pruny und gross!"

Lilli turned her back on him, "If you're so worried, go stand watch."

Gilbert snorted and walked over to a rock where Matthew was resting. In a high pitched voice he mocked, "Yeah, yeah. 'Go stand vatch, Gilbert, vhile I blow our secret vith my stupid girly habits'." He rolled his eyes and muttered, "You don't need hygiene if you're awesome." A loud yell from the direction of the camp made Matthew spin around and he squeaked in alarm. Gilbert looked up just in time to see three men run by him, stripping along the way and heading for the water. Some underwear even landed in his horns. "Gah! Ve're doomed! Zhere are a couple of zhings I _know _zhey're bound to notice!" he whispered as they jumped in the pond towards Lilli. Thinking quickly he ran into the lake and began swimming towards the three men...

Lilli gasped when she heard them jump in the lake. What were they doing?! It was the middle of the night. She scrambled behind a rock jutting out of the pond and hoped they wouldn't notice her. Splashing noises and laughter were all she could hear for a while until a familiar voice called, "Oi, Lieven!" She held back a groan as she saw Arthur wave to her.

"O-oh! Hi guys, I didn't know you were here!" Arthur looked back at his companions in confusion. Now that they were closer Lilli could see that the others were Alfred and that Russian man. "I was just washing, I'm clean now so I'm gonna go. Bye bye!" she dipped down until only her head was visible and waded towards the reeds but Arthur swam over and held out his hand.

"Wait, stay a moment. I want you to meet some of my friends and since _one _of them might have made an unfavorable first impression-" He glanced back at Alfred. "-perhaps we could start over?" He turned to his friends, "This is Lieven Zwingli, from Switzerland." _Actually I was born in Liechtenstein, _Lilli thought.

The Russian giant smiled and held out his hand, "I'm Ivan Braginski." Lilli shook his hand and shivered at how powerful his grip was,

"Hi Ivan, it's nice to- ah!" she covered her innocent virgin eyes _because Alfred had climbed up the rock and was standing there in all his glory!  
_

The young American stood there with his hands on his hips while Lilli looked away, Arthur scoffed in contempt and Ivan looked on as if it was a normal occurrence (it was but Lilli didn't know that since Alfred's tent was far away from hers). "And I'm Alfred F. Jones, president of the rock! And there's nothing you pussies can do about it," The challenge in his tone made Arthur grin wickedly.

"Is that so? I bet Lieven and I can take you!"

_Aaaand it's time to go. _Lilli backed away, "If it's all the same to you, I really don't want to take him anywhere."

Arthur looked at her incredulously and Alfred smirked. "But Lieven, we have to fight!" Arthur half yelled.

Lilli held up a hand, "No, we don't." Arthur smiled knowingly, obviously Lieven was afraid. It was only natural of course, he was very young after all. He crept towards him as Lieven kept talking, "We could all just close our eyes and... and swim around!" Lilli squeaked as Arthur grabbed her arm and tried to pull her out of the water.

"Come on! Don't be such a- OUCH!" Everyone heard a chomping sound and saw Arthur grab at his backside. "Something bit me!" he shouted.

Gilbert popped up between Arthur and Lilli, spitting and gagging. "Yeech! Vhat a nasty flavor!" he complained.

"SNAKE!" Arthur screamed, scrambling away from the dragon. He and Ivan quickly climbed up on the rock with Alfred with them all shouting and yelling in panic.

Lilli took advantage of the situation and whistled. Roderich looked up, saw her predicament and quickly ran into the pond. Lilli used him as a shield while she left the water and hurried to put her clothes back on. Gilbert - he'd snagged a ride back to land on Roderich's tail - was still spitting when he heard Arthur say to Alfred, "Some president of the rock." Alfred's only reply was to push him back into the water.

"Boy that was close!" Lilli whispered, slipping on her shoes.

Gilbert somehow managed to produce a toothbrush and some toothpaste out of thin air and was scrubbing out his mouth. "No, zhat vas vile! You owe me big time! Zhat unawesome Brit tasted like scones!"

A sigh was the only reply he got for a while. Lilli grabbed a towel and dried her short hair for a bit before vowing, "I am NEVER going to see a naked man again." As soon as she finished saying this twenty or so other men ran past her towards the pond and yes, they were all naked. Roderich shook his head and snorted in what sounded like disgust while Lilli stood frozen in shock.

Gilbert let out a harsh laugh, "Don't look at me, I'm not biting anymore butts."

* * *

**XD I feel so sorry for Lilli. Eesh, this scene is so awkwardly hilarious in the movie. I hardly did it justice with this stupid drabble. So go watch the movie! It's fantabulous! **


	27. It's Tough To Be A God

**Hallo! I'm actually really excited about this chapter since it combines three awesome things. The BTT, this song (it isn't Disney, but it's still amazing) and... well, you'll see. Flyingmintbunny9 requested this one, so thank you Flyingmintbunny9! *huggles***

**Song: It's Tough To Be A God**

* * *

It was a small moon on a small planet. Insignificant but teeming with life, much like the forest moon of Endor. Strange, alien animals roamed this little moon, unsuspecting of the commotion that would soon besiege it right about...now! Trees were flattened and birds scattered as a spaceship fell from the sky and crash landed. A hush fell over that part of the forest, the only sound coming from the superheated rocks sizzling around the crash sight. The ship was small but apparently sturdy since it hadn't been crushed or shattered. An inquisitive bird landing on the hull of the ship and pecked at it. A loud hiss made it fly off is fright but if it had stayed it might have seen a door open and two figures step out of the ship accompanied by smoke. Both were young boys, only about 12. One was albino with white hair and red eyes while the other was a golden blonde with blue eyes. They were wearing a tan tunic and pants covered by a brown cloak.

The blonde one glared at the albino, "Well, another brilliant scheme of yours 'as gone awry, Gilbert."

Gilbert scoffed, " Puh_lease_, You vorry too much Francis. We'll just fix zhis baby up and head back to zhe Jedi Temple before anyone misses us!" A loud bang from inside the ship followed by a spurt of flames shooting out the window made them both jump. Another boy ran out, his tanned skin blackened by soot.

"It's no use, this ship is totaled!" He yelled, "I barely had time to send out a distress signal!" Several loud, muffled booms echoed inside the ship and his green eyes widened in panic. "Get away! It's gonna blow!" The three boys scrambled out of the crater and pushed their way through the thick vegetation. It still wasn't far enough. The explosion lifted them off their feet and threw them twenty yards away. Gilbert and Francis were lucky, they landed on a patch of ferns. Their friend, however, was slammed into a tree. He fell to the ground with a _THUD_ and lay there motionless. Gilbert sat up and blinked, trying to see clearly but failing since the massive ball of fire that had been their ship had scorched it's image into his eyes.

"Antonio!" he heard Francis yell. Vague shapes could be seen now, like that of Francis kneeling next to a tree. Gilbert followed him warily and let out a yelp when his eyesight finally cleared. Antonio was lying face down on the ground, one of his arms was twisted in an awkward position at his side and the other sprawled out. Gilbert grabbed his waist and tried to roll him over but Francis held out a hand, "Be careful, his arm looks broken." Moving slower and with more care, the albino laid Antonio on his back and they both examined him. Antonio was motionless, the only movement was the slow rise and fall of his chest.

"Toni?" Gilbert tapped his chest, snapped his fingers and shook him slightly but all attempts at reviving him were futile. Gilbert sighed and sat back on his heels. He balked a bit at the venomous glare Francis gave him. "Vhat?!"

"Zhis is all your fault Gilbert!"

"Oi, zhis isn't-"

"Oui, it is! YOU were the one who said we should take a joyride in zhat ship while our masters were at a counsel and YOU were the one who messed with zhe controls and sent us into hyperspace! Now we are stuck here, we don't know were we are, no one else knows were we are and Toni might be in a coma for all we know!" Francis stood up and grabbed at his hair. "It's always like zhis with you Gilbert, you always 'ave to get into trouble. Only zhis time we might actually die!"

Gilbert stood up as well. Anger was written all over his face as he pointed at Francis. "Oh yeah? Vell YOU TWO always go along with my 'stupid schemes'. Who's zhe bigger fool now? And as for anozher zhing, ve are NOT going to die. The awesomeness in me vill save us."

Francis snorted and raised his eyes to the heavens. "Unless your 'awesomeness' can heal Antonio and get us off zhis planet you can go shove it up your-"

"I'll us zhe Force, dummkopf!" Gilbert interrupted. Kneeling down again he let his hand hover over Antonio's face. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to focus on the Force. He could feel it everywhere in the trees, the sky, the earth beneath him and in his two friends. He tried to manipulate it inside Antonio's body and figure out what was wrong but all he got was a jumble of emotions and information. He lowered his hand in defeat and opened his eyes. Without another word he picked Antonio up and slung him over his shoulder. With a jerk he motioned towards Francis' belt and started walking deeper into the forest.

It took a while for Francis to understand but once he did he grabbed his lightsaber. He would have to be the one to defend them if danger approached. He could also see Gilbert straining under Antonio's weight but made no comment. Gilbert disliked any sign of weakness, especially from himself. _Perhaps I'm overreacting, _Francis thought. _Perhaps Antonio is alright and perhaps our masters are on our trail this very minute...perhaps..._

* * *

"I'm gonna kill those little bastards." Romano muttered from his seat behind the controls of the ship. Romano Vargas wasn't very tall but his temper preceded him. People said that you could literally see steam coming off his auburn hair and flames shooting out of his hazel eyes when angered. Most people said he wasn't a Jedi to be messed with... except for Arthur Kirkland that is. His temper matched Romano's and his ability with the Force was almost unparalleled.

Arthur raised a bushy eyebrow, "Not if I get to them first." He looked over at their third companion. Ludwig Beilschmidt was the tallest of the three and like Arthur he was blonde. However, while Arthur's hair was wild he kept his slicked back and his calm blue eyes were contrasting with Arthur's vivid green.

"I vould only kill Gilbert, he's probably zhe one behind all of zhis," his voice was calm as he discussed the fate of his padawan.

Romano tsked, "But Antonio's stupid enough to follow him."

"And Francis was probably bored enough to go along," Arthur sighed.

Romano looked down at a monitor and frowned, "Hey, I can't track their signal." Arthur and Ludwig crowded around him.

"What do you mean you can't track their signal?" the shorter blonde demanded.

"I mean that I CAN'T TRACK THEIR SIGNAL YOU SONOFA-"

Ludwig slid in between the two hotheads and glared down at both of them. They shrank a bit from his look and shut their mouths. Romano took a deep breath and continued, "Something's wrong with their ship, either something's damaged or..." He bit his lip and didn't finish his sentence.

Arthur looked out the port window at the billions of stars around them. So many stars...so many places they could be... "They'd better be alive," he growled.

* * *

"Francis, look at _THIS_!"

Francis looked to where Gilbert was pointing and gasped. Just ahead in a clearing he could see a huge wall of stone looming ahead. The two of them carefully approached it (Antonio was still unconscious). It was around fifty feet high and made of a dull gray stone that curved on each side to form a huge circle with a diameter of one hundred feet. "Wow, you don't see somezhing like zhat everyday," Francis muttered.

Gilbert trudged forward and placed a hand on the wall. "Do you zhink anyone lives in here? Is there a vay in?" Francis just shrugged. After pausing a moment to adjust Antonio's deadweight the albino nodded resolutely. "I don't sense anyzhing dangerous. Let's look around." He started walking around the perimeter, Francis two feet behind him. Every snap or strange noise coming from the forest made him edgy. He gripped his lightsaber tighter and forced himself to stop and look around. The his birth planet had forests too but these trees were older. Much older. There were secrets here.

By now Gilbert was way ahead. His face brightened as a gap appeared and tried to run towards it but he tripped over a hidden stone. He would've fallen flat on his face if the wall hadn't been there. He lean against it, breathing heavily and looking at the entrance. It was almost seven feet high and wide enough that three grown men could walk through side by side. A strange glow was emitting from it. "Hurry up, Francis!" Gilbert yelled. Francis broke out of his reverie and jogged up to meet him. Together they walked closer to the opening, squinting as the glow got brighter. They turned the corner at last and entered the giant circle.

The sight before them was breathtaking.

The whole interior wall was covered it what seemed to be gold. It bounced the small amount of sunlight, curved it and bended it until the whole circle glowed like the sun itself. In the middle of the circle was a statue of some humanoid creature with red, yellow and black stripes painted horizontally on it's face. In one clawed hand it held a club and it wore a headdress of green, purple and red feathers. A large altar lay before it and gold and jewels were scattered around it. "It's some kind of idol..." Francis whispered. Despite his low tones, his voice echoed off the walls like the sunlight and grew louder with each retelling.

**_"It's some kind-"_**

**_"idol"_**

**_"kind of idol"_**

**_"idol, it's some-"_  
**

Gilbert placed a free hand over an ear, "Gott, zhat's annoying!" he yelled.

**_"Gott, zhat's annoying!"_**

**_"annoying!"_**

**_"-zhat's anno-"_**_  
_

"SHUT UP!" Gilbert screamed.

**_"SHUT UP!_****_"_**

**_"SHUT-"_  
**

Francis clapped a hand over Gilbert's mouth and winced as Gilbert outburst got louder and louder. After a couple of minutes it finally faded and was gone. Francis released the albino and padded towards the idol. He felt something crunch beneath his foot and looked down. A half crushed skull grinned back at him. He suppressed a scream and stumbled backwards. Gilbert rolled his eyes at this and walked on confidently, ignoring the sound of brittle bones cracking between his boots. Francis noted with interest that the sound of his footsteps and the crack of bones didn't echo like their voices had. He also couldn't help but notice that there were more skeletons piled up around idol and altar but not directly touching them nor the tribute around it.

The padawan stood face to face with the idol. Two red gems made up the eyes and that sort of endeared the statue to the red eyed boy. He carefully lifted Antonio off his shoulder and laid him out on the altar. He barely took a moment to rub his sore arms before once again placing his hand just above his friends face. Francis watched this all in silent confusion. He huffed and carefully picked his way over to the altar. He leaned in until his lips almost brushed Gilbert's ear, "What are you doing?" His voice was so low that only a hiss echoed off the wall.

Gilbert shot him an annoyed look and whispered back, "Zhe Force is strong here, can't you feel it?" Francis focused and was nearly overwhelmed by the sheer power coming from the idol. "I think zhat zhe creatures who lived here were able to use zhe Force and filled this idol with it," Gilbert continued, closing his eyes. "Maybe I can tap into it's power and heal Antonio." The blonde looked at him dubiously but nodded.

_Focus, stay focused and allow the Force to guide you, just like Master taught, _Gilbert thought. He bit back a gasp as a hundred different fragments of emotions and memories flooded from the idol _**he could see the creatures that had lived here/pale green skin and claws/ruby red eyes/bowing before this idol/invaders/stronger than their primitive weapons/they could use the Great Power against them though/pushed back to this holy place/almost all dead/pain/kill the invaders/their god must be protected/death/it hurts mother!/invaders coming/death/echoes/one of the red eyed creatures is chanting in front of the idol/his body falls/his spirit is in the idol now/the idol is moving/killing the invaders/but at a great price/all dead/nothing but the idol and the spirit now/silence** _

**_i am lonely_**

**_you are here now_**

**_but you cannot stay_**

**_i will heal him little one_**

**_but please _**

**_destroy the idol before you go_**

**_set me free_ **_  
_

When Gilbert started shaking Francis got nervous. When tears slid down his pale cheeks Francis started freaking out. He grabbed Gilbert's shoulders and tried to pull him away but he couldn't be budged. A soft groan caught Francis' attention and he looked at the altar. Antonio was stirring, no, sitting up and rubbing his eyes! Before Antonio could speak Gilbert's eyes flew open and he roughly shoved him off the altar. Francis jerked forward and caught their friend quickly. He didn't get the chance to reprimand Gilbert. The albino had grabbed his lightsaber, the red blade mixing with the yellow glow around them and making a pale orange color that shimmered. Wordlessly he leaped onto the altar and struck down the statue. The top half fell to the ground and shattered.

_**thank you** _

* * *

It wasn't until a few days later that Arthur, Romano and Ludwig finally found them. The large, circular wall and crater from the crash had been easy to spot from above. They found their padawans sitting on a low table in the middle of the circle, eating fruit and surrounded by rubble and dust. The three boys hopped to their feet and ran to their masters. As soon as he was within reach Romano smacked Antonio across the head. "You bastard! What were you thinking, huh?!"Francis glanced at Gilbert, the echo hadn't returned ever since that statue had been smashed. Gilbert wasn't looking at Francis though, as soon as he'd caught sight of Ludwig he'd made a beeline for him.

Ludwig huffed slightly as his young charge ran into him and wrapped his arms around to make a hug. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Gilbert choked out. Ludwig smiled softly and patted his head,

"It's alright."

* * *

**Whew! This was a doozy! It was one of those stories where ideas just keep coming (after a few days of writer's block of course XP). And in case it wasn't awesome what the third awesome thing about this story is: JEDI! I love Star Wars, I absolutely love it. The sad thing is that I wanted to write at least one sci-fi oneshot since a friend of mine absolutely LOVES it. *sarcasm* Aren't I a good friend? XD **

**Please review!**


	28. IMPORTANT MESSAGE! PLEASE READ!

**All right y'all, I found this and I thought I should share it with you. It's not a new chapter, but it is important. Please read!**

**A message from dracohalo117 and Leaf Ranger...SOPA is back, that is right people, the bill that is threatening to take away our freedoms on the internet and beyond is BACK, and not only is it back, but it is trying to be passed quietly so nobody notices, SOPA will guarantee that anybody who streams a video, whether it be on youtube, a walkthrough for a video game, or a kid singing a song that is 'copyrighted' they will be treated as a felon, that is right, a FELON, do you understand me? YOU will be treated like the highest form of criminal for uploading a video game walkthrough on youtube, for singing a song on karaoke, hell, you could be arrested and treated as a felon for posting a screenshot...**

**Now, why am I telling you this? Because this is only just the beginning, how long until Fanfiction is being attacked, how long until a fanfiction writer is being carted off to a maximum state prison for writing a character from Naruto into their fanfic, or a character from Bleach, or a character fro Sekirei or Seikon no Qwaser, Highschool DxD, Trinity Blood, Witchblade, how long until THAT crap is happening? I assure you that if this passes, it will not be long, oh no, it will not be long at all, because once this passes, then ANYTHING goes, Fanfiction will be attacked for using canon characters in a fanon manner, authors will be arrested for writing a book whose main character has glasses, just like in another series, artists will be arrested and confined for using sapphire blue in the iris of one of their characters like another author. We CANNOT let this happen!**

**Don't believe us? Look at the links below, remove the spaces, see for yourself, and please, PLEASE spread the word and fight this assault on our freedoms, because this isn't just going to affect americans, oh no, it will affect EVERYBODY across the globe!**

**: / www . huffingtonpost 2013/08/07/unauthorized-streaming-felony_n_3720479 . html**

**: / www . washingtonpost blogs/the-switch/wp/2013/08/05/sopa-died-in-2012-b ut-obama-administration-wants-to-revive-part-of-it /**

**: / www . techdirt articles/20130805/12472124074/administration-cant- let-go-wants-to-bring-back-felony-streaming-provis ions-sopa . shtml**

**and the video which caused us to find out about this horrible thing...remove the spaces, and spread the word...**

**: / www . youtube watch?v=1fTt4K4Cae4**

**POST THIS MESSAGE AS AN UPDATE TO EACH OF YOUR FICS! PM EVERY AUTHOR YOU'VE EVER TALKED TO AND TELL THEM THE MESSAGE! TELL ALL YOUR OFFLINE FRIENDS AND FB FRIENDS! SPREAD THE WORD FAR AND WIDE!**


	29. Tale As Old As Time

**This chapter is for Lylinn who wanted France/Fem!Canada.**

**Song: Tale As Old As Time**

* * *

It was the same story every year.

Madeline was half expecting the knock on her door that winter morning. She didn't even bother to get dressed, she padded down the stairs and down the hall in her tank top and sweats. With a snap the deadbolt was unlocked and the door opened. Madeline eyed her visitor critically. His winter coat and snow pants were purple but they looked good against his blonde hair and fair blue eyes. His black boots were frosted with snow even though Madeline had shoveled the stuff off her driveway just yesterday. A quick peek behind him revealed that it had snowed during the night and that her hard work was ruined. She didn't care, snow was awesome.

"Am I a bit early?" he asked, taking in her state of undress.

"I didn't know we had an appointment, Francis."

"Don't we?"

A small smile graced Madeline's features. "I guess so. Give me a moment."

Minutes later found them walking away from the house, both of them holding a pair of ice skates. A companionable silence fell over the two, what do you say to someone who knows everything about you? They had grown up together, going to the same school for twelve grades until their career choices had split them apart. Francis had gone back to Europe and his native homeland while Madeline had stayed in Canada to watch over the polar bears in the Arctic Circle. For a couple of years she'd thought that she would never see her friend again. She certainly didn't count on him seeking her out in Alert. So here they were. Every year he would travel to Canada to visit at her vacation home and every year they would go ice skating. A small pond lay just beyond a grove of pine trees. Their fresh scent cleared Madeline's nose and she heard Francis breath in deeply.

"How's Alfred?" Francis asked.

"Good, he's out of college and touring the world like he always wanted to do. Ran into some British girl along the way and-"

"Ohononon~"

Madeline rolled her eyes, of COURSE Francis would jump to _that _conclusion before she'd finished speaking. Though to be fair, he was right. Alfred had never openly admitted it but it was clear that he'd fallen head over heels for his new traveling companion. Not that Francis needed to know that. If he got any more puffed up his head would explode. That would be a shame, he was very handsome.

The pond glittered before them, clean and as yet smooth and unskated on (yes, unskated is a word, shut up). Francis dusted the snow off a bench Madeline had installed years ago before sitting. Madeline joined him and they quickly donned their skates.

Both were masters when it came to ice skating. They zipped across the ice as gracefully as any Olympic contestant. The sun feebly managed to poke it's way through the cloud cover for this annual moment, wreathing the two in a yellow glow that glittered on the ice. Madeline was the faster of two - not that it stopped Francis from trying to catch up of course - and she spanned the perimeter of the pond. Seeing an opportunity to cheat, Francis cut across the middle of the pond and grabbed her wrist. Madeline let him spin her around so they were facing each other. Raising an eyebrow she asked, "Oui, monsieur?"

"Do you remember when we first met?"

A long pause followed. Winter birds chattered with one another in the surrounding trees. "O-of course not!" Madeline gasped. "I-... We were babies when my family moved into the neighborhood, remember?"

The Frenchman shook his head, "Non, _you _were three and I was six. I remember seeing you for the first time. You were wearing a red shirt with a polar bear. It was hugging a pink heart and it matched your pink and white skirt." Madeline allowed him to grab her other wrist. Her breath hitched slightly as he pulled her closer. "Your hair was lighter then, a pale gold. Your mother had put it in little pigtails..." A hand moved from her wrist to rest against her back. "You were so adorable, even to my young eyes."

_Stop it! _A frightened voice in Madeline's head screamed. _Stop it, Francis! You're changing the game! Play by the rules! _A perfect friendship was being tested as a thumb brushed against her cheek and a forehead came in contact with her own.

Francis had always been a rule breaker.

The kiss was soft, featherlight. It wasn't rushed or forced, it was curious and wondering. It was playful and questioning. _Is this okay? Have I ruined the game? _

Another kiss followed, this time instigated by Madeline. A hand reached up to tangle in that perfect blonde hair. The scared little voice faded willingly as she was reciprocated eagerly.

_No, you haven't. I love this new game. _

* * *

**This isn't dramatic or action packed and it's less than 1000 words but to be honest, that's what I wanted. The song I chose for my inspiration isn't about love at first sight or a drama you find in Hollywood. I love this song because it really describes how most people fall in love. It takes time and patience to find out if you're in love for goodness sake! You can't truly love someone you met two seconds ago. *looks pointedly at Snow White, The Little Mermaid and Sleeping Beauty* Don't get me wrong, I like movies like that, I just don't like it when they're outside of a fairy tale setting.  
**

**Ahem, sorry for the long explanation. I'm sorry this took so long to finish but the evil institution known as SCHOOL *lighting flashes and thunder booms in the background* has started and it literally sucked out all of my energy... even though I now spend seven hours of the day sitting. Go figure. Ugh. Well, I'm slowly getting the will to write again so... expect at least two updates this month. Why do I get the feeling that I'm setting a goal I'm not going to accomplish. -_-; **

**Enough of my moaning! I hope y'all enjoyed this. Leave a review and tell me what you think!**

**P.S. Alert is the northern most permanently inhabited place on earth and it's in Canada! The average temperature is -0.4F (-18C) Eesh!**


	30. Let Me Be Good To You

**First of all, I'm gonna come right out and say that I blame school for my laziness. It sucks out all of my creativity and my will to write and it's like the fifth circle of Hell in that it never, EVER eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeenndddddsss! Okay, I'm exaggerating but that's what it feels like.**

**Okay, moving on. It's been so long since I've written a one shot that's NOT a request that I thought I would do so now. I mean, it's not like I'm having writer's block or anything...eheheheh. So, without further ado, I give you a chapter filled with perverts!**

**Song: Let Me Be Good To You**

* * *

Switzerland pounded on America's door for the third time that minute and shuffled anxiously. There was a shout of, "OI, GO OPEN YOUR DOOR, BURRO!" from inside. The doorknob turned a few seconds later, and a sleepy-eyed America appeared in the doorway.

He yawned and rubbed at his eyes before asking, "Hey, Switzy, waddaya doin' here so early?"

Switzerland rolled his eyes. Five in the morning was NOT early. "When I woke up this morning, Liechtenstein was gone and on her nightstand was a note from Hungary. It said that she would be taking care of Lili for the day but, knowing Hungary, I got worried. I looked for them and my big brother sense lead me here."

The other nation nodded, "Yeah, Hungary showed up at my doorstep at three in the morning with your sis and a bunch of other girls. Mexico, Belarus, Ukraine, Seychelles... Anyway, they've been watching movies the whole time. Hey, is your big brother sense like Peter Parker's Spider Sense?"

"What? No! Why would... never mind. What have they been watching?" Switzerland demanded.

America scratched his cheek thoughtfully, "It's kinda weird, they're just picking movies at random. Right now they're watching Labyrinth."

"...That's it?" Switzerland frowned as America nodded. "Are you absolutely sure?" Another nod.

"Oh...well then...If it's just a...girl's night out kind of thing, I'll be going...yeah..." The poor nation awkwardly backed away and headed for his car, thoroughly perplexed by the complexities of the female species in general. America waved goodbye and quietly closed the door. _Time to go back to bed,_ he thought, repressing another yawn. A loud set of squeals made him jump and his head swung around to look at the living room.

"Do you see that?! DO YOU SEE THAT?!" he heard Seychelles scream. Another collective "SQEEEEEEEEEEEE~!" followed and he plugged his ears. Tch, girls.

None of the girls crammed together on the couch paid any mind to America as he slowly climbed the stairs to his room. Their attention was diverted by something more...stimulating. "Thank the gods for tight pantalones," Mexico whispered, slowly peeling a banana as she watched the Goblin King sing "As the World Falls Down".

"David Bowie is attractive, yes?" Belarus commented. She was the only one able to control her emotions, though sooner or later she would surely break.

Liechtenstein tugged at Hungary's sleeve. "Miss Hungary, what is...I mean, right there, between..." She pointed to the screen and fell silent. Hungary patted her head with one hand while using the other to hold a towel to her bleeding nose. "I'll explain later, dear. Just enjoy it for now~!"

* * *

Okay, this one won't make sense unless you've seen Labyrinth. Let's just say that there are parts of it (All of David Bowie's scenes to be exact) that definitely appeal to the female demographic...

* * *

People might think that the BTT were perverted, crazy hooligans with no regard to propriety and/or civility. For the most part that was true, and they were shameless about it. But, there were times when they would do something normal friends would do, like have brunch at one of their houses for instance. Such was the case today. As the three sat around Spain's table, France sipped at some coffee and wriggled his eyebrows. "So, who was wizh you last night?"

Prussia looked up curiously while Spain just looked confused.

"Qué?"

"Don't lie now! I saw three cars parked outside when I got 'ere. One is yours, anozher is Prussia's and the third...?"

The Spaniard's eyes lit up in understanding and he nodded, "Oh, si. Mexico's staying here for a few days."

"Ksesesese! Und vhy vould zhat be?" Prussia smirked, exchanging looks with France.

Spain shrugged nonchalantly, "She wanted to visit Romano and asked if she could stay." He let out a sigh and smiled, "It's so cute, she still calls him Tio Romano from when they were both so little~!"

"Oh? And what does she call you, mon ami?" France asked curiously.

Spain's face fell and Prussia cackled. "I can zhink of a few names!" His expression softened at the dejected look on his friend's face and he patted his back. "Er, don't take it personally, Spanien. She just hates you for political reasons, ja?"

Spain hid his face in the crook of his arm.

France tsked. "You're tact leaves much to be desired."

"Shut up, french fry!"

"How dare you!"

A smile tugged at the corners of Spain's mouth and he spoke up, "Hey amigos, can I ask you something?" France let go of Prussia's shirt and in turn Prussia released his grip on France's neck. They both nodded and he continued, "Do you think... there's something of me inside Mexico? I mean-" he hurried to explain himself, "-I don't mean the country, I mean her. Mexico...Maria, as a person. Do you think there's something of me that you can see in her? I'm sorry, I'm not making any sense, am I?"

A devious smile crossed Prussia's face, "Well, zhe only way you could be inside her is if you-"

A loud bang from upstairs and muffled curses cut him off and they all looked at the ceiling. Spain hurried to the foot of the stairs, "Are you alright, Mexico?"

"Yes! I'm fine!" she shouted back. Mexico appeared at the top of the stairs then, tugging at her jeans and frowning. "These stupid jeans shrunk in the wash. I tripped trying to get them on!" She struggled down the stairs, trying to zip up the pants. Once at the bottom she turned slightly, revealing the too tight garment and her... shapely derriere.

"Ohonononon! Ce cul!" France chuckled, his eyes glued on Mexico.

"I can definitely see somezhing of Spain vhen I look at Mexico," Prussia muttered.

* * *

**In Mexican society (well, my family at least) it's good for women to have nice nalgas (that means 'rear end' for you non-Spanish speakers). I was thinking about that and thought, "How did that start? Where did that cultural custom come from?" My theory is it started with Spain. XD Anyway, I hoped you liked this and a special shout out to Epic F. Awesomesauce for betaing this! :D**

_Editor's Note: This is fantabulous._

**Wait...she's my editor now? ._.**


	31. Love Will Find A Way

**Hola my friends! This chapter of PruCan awesomeness is for Blood Rose Knight!  
**

**Song: Love Will Find A Way**

* * *

_It is a truth universally acknowledged by all magical creatures that any form of shapeshifting requires pain. To change one's form, the form their very soul was designed for, and become something else puts a tremendous strain on the soul and body alike. Therefore, pain is to be accepted and tolerated by those foolish enough to willingly change their appearance. Only fools perform such feats on a regular basis. Unfortunately, love makes fools of the wisest of creatures._

The shoreline was usually a sheer cliff that rose high above the waves, protecting the towns and small villages that lived just beyond. However, there was one spot, a weakness some might say, where the cliffs had been worn down by the ocean's never ending patience, and a small beach had formed. The sand there was very fine and very soft, almost silt. Just beyond the small cove the beginnings of a forest blocked any view of the land beyond. It was a hideaway of sorts. After all, no human would dare come near a sea infested with merfolk.

Moonlight played and leaped over the water as a sleepy albatross flew high above. Had it been daylight, the bird would have noticed a trail of bubbles appearing along the water, heading for the shore. Ripples followed as a head poked out of the water. Long strands of blonde hair clung to the young mermaid's face and she swiped at them irritably. Her violet eyes scanned the shore for any sign of life before crawling up the soft slope to dry land, her tail useless in the shallow water. Once she was completely out of the ocean she let out a gasp of pain as her tail began to throb. She bit back groans as her scales ever so slowly disappeared and her tail split in two. A hiss of pain escaped her lips as toes grew from her new feet. At last the transformation was complete, and the girl managed to crawl up to a small tree, where a dress lay nestled in a hollow. She carefully donned the simple garment, her limbs still spasming from the pain.

"All right… up we go now," she whispered, her throat unused to the dry surface air. The trunk of the tree provided an ample crutch to lean on as she staggered to her feet. "You'd think this would get easier…"

Step by step the girl stumbled through the trees. After a while, her feet became steadier and her strides more confident. The trees thinned again and soon enough she was standing in a clearing. Now it was time to wait.

* * *

A hot wind whipped through the forest, frying any fragile leaves on it's way. The girl woke with a gasp and licked her lips unconsciously. She slowly sat up and looked up at the starlit sky. It wasn't long before another wave of heat followed, this time accompanied by a low booming sound, like a giant clapping its hands. The booms increased in volume and speed until the former mermaid was forced to cover her ears to keep from going deaf. An enormous shadow swept over the trees and hovered over the clearing before landing with a final boom. The girl looked up fearlessly at the beast that stood before her. It was an unusual feat to say the least, considering that it was a dragon, a veritable lord of the sky.

This dragon was white from head to tail with flashing crimson eyes. He slowly lowered his head until he was face to snout with the girl, allowing her to touch his scaly cheek. This done, he withdrew and huddled down close to the ground.

His transformation was much more painful than hers.

Scales molded into skin as fingers replaced claws. All signs of a tail, horns and wings disappeared, downy white hair taking their place. He kept his jaw clenched to prevent the slightest sound of pain from escaping his lips. He _would not_ show any weakness! Steam billowed off his new skin, letting the girl know the transformation was complete. After a minutes of waiting for the steam to clear, she crawled forward and placed a hand on the the dragon-turned-human's shoulder. He feebly placed a hand over hers and tried to sit up.

"It's not fair," the girl whispered. "I only have to turn my tail into legs while you…" She trailed off, pulling him closer and allowing him to rest against her. "It's not fair."

The man made no reply, simply nuzzling his face underneath her chin. There was something so incredibly _good_ about skin to skin contact. Something he couldn't get with his diamond hard scales. He opened his eyes and gazed up at her delicate features. She blushed at the adoration that was practically oozing from his glowing eyes. "W-where are your clothes hidden?"

"Zhey burned up." His unfamiliar tongue struggled to pronounce these human words correctly.

"Burned up?! How on earth-"

"Accidentally."

"_Accidentally?_"

"Ja."

Laughter bubbled up unbidden from her throat. "If you say so."

"I do say so. I vas too awesome for zhem."

This light banter continued for many hours. To talk about anything heavier would bring up painful truths that neither wanted to discuss. It was getting harder and harder to transform. Soon a choice would have to be made. Should they give up their families, their magic and their immortality for a few short years of bliss as frail humans, or live out their never ending lives separated and alone?

But that was not a choice that had to be made tonight. Tonight they simply had to sit together in their clearing, his skin a little too hot for a mortal being, hers a little too cold, and watch the stars dance above them.

* * *

**I love them so! X3 PruCan fluff is good for the soul... oh, and Epic F. Awesomesauce apparently still thinks she's my editor. **

_Editor's Note: Viva is awesome everyone, and so is this chapter, so HAH. _

**...Not that what she says is bad...XD **


End file.
